Foreign Policy
Bid to Revive Export-Import Bank Runs Aground
Foreign Policy cites Senior Fellow Ryan Young on the Ex-Im bank: “It’s the ‘they do it, too’ fallacy,” said Ryan Young of the…
Blog
How Much Federal Regulation Was There in 2019?
Happy New Year, everyone. Now that 2019 is in the books, we have some data on how much new regulation hit the books. Note that…
Blog
Best Books of 2019: In Defense of Openness
Most policy proposals for fighting poverty are zero-sum. The best way to help the poor, the argument goes, is to take from the rich. Van…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
Federal workers got a three-day week as a Christmas present this year. Agencies still put out 323 notices, 50 proposed regulations, and 1,342 Federal Register…
Blog
Best Books of 2019: Big Business by Tyler Cowen
Cowen argues that most people underestimate the amount of good that big businesses do. They make possible affordable communications, books, culture and art (and the…
Blog
Best Books of 2019: Humanomics by Vernon Smith and Bart Wilson
Smith and Wilson combine insights from their experimental economics research with insights about human character from Adam Smith’s "Wealth of Nations" and especially his 1759 book "The Theory…
Blog
Best Books of 2019: Expert Failure by Roger Koppl
Koppl uses the role of experts to explain the difference between approaching social problems from the top down versus from the bottom up. Koppl defines an…
Blog
Best Books of 2019: Legal Systems Very Different from Ours
Many years ago at a Mont Pelerin Society conference in Reykjavik, I saw David Friedman give a talk on Icelandic law during the Free State…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
Congress finished the year with a bang. In a two day span the House impeached the president and passed the USMCA trade agreement. Both chambers…
Blog
Best Books of 2019: The Narrow Corridor
Predatory governments with high corruption, that don’t respect political and economic freedoms, are extractive. Countries with these sorts of institutions tend to be both poor…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
Britain held a major election, and the U.S. House of Representatives is set to impeach President Trump. At the same time, Trump is poised for…
Blog
Phase One of a China-U.S. Trade Agreement and the Ratchet Effect
As of Friday, December 13th, the U.S. and Chinese governments have agreed in principle to phase one of a trade agreement. The Chinese government will…
Blog
Competitive Enterprise Institute Opposes USMCA Trade Agreement
The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) today announced its opposition to the USMCA trade agreement between the United States, Mexico, and Canada because the updated agreement…
News Release
CEI Opposes USMCA
The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) today announced its opposition to the USMCA agreement between the United States, Mexico, and Canada.
Inside Sources
Solar Gets Partial Reprieve From Tariffs on Imports
Inside Sources cites senior fellow Ryan Young on the solar industry: “China protects its solar makers,” said Ryan Young, a senior fellow at…
News Release
USMCA Economic Impact Almost too Small to Measure
Today, the White House and House Democrats have reportedly reached a deal on terms for a trade deal between the U.S., Mexico, and Canada. But…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The House began preparing articles of impeachment, President Trump announced new tariffs against three allies, a NATO summit was surprisingly contentious, and the federal government…
News Release
President Trump Should Walk Back New Steel, Aluminum Tariffs against Brazil, Argentina
President Trump this morning announced via Twitter that he is imposing steel and aluminum tariffs against Brazil and Argentina. Tariffs won’t help farmers or manufacturers,…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
While the nation celebrated Thanksgiving with family and friends, rulemaking agencies published new regulations ranging from almond information to missile accidents.
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
Congress averted a government shutdown until December 20th by passing a continuing resolution. The Fall 2019 Unified Agenda was also released, which compiles all rulemaking…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The 2019 Federal Register has already exceeded its page count during President Trump’s first year in office, with more than a month to spare and…
Blog
Ex-Im Reauthorization Vote Today in the House
The House of Representatives will vote on reauthorizing the Export-Import Bank today. Even if Ex-Im is reauthorized, the fight over it has already yielded a…
Washington Examiner
Losing the Ex-Im Bank Battle Could Lead to a Victory in the War Against It
As flashpoint issues go, the Export-Import Bank is an unlikely candidate. And yet, here we are.
Citation
USMCA North American Trade Deal Solves Few Problems
The U.S. may be on the verge of a North American trade deal, but there are bigger problems with trade that Congress should fix, says…
News Release
CEI Opposes Waters Ex-Im Bank Reauthorization Bill
The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) opposes a bill authored by Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) that would reauthorize Export-Import Bank (Ex-Im Bank) operations. The bill is…
Blog
Two New Studies on Economics of Trade
Philip Thompson and Lorenzo Montanari have compiled a Trade Barrier Index, just released by the Property Rights Alliance. The U.S. currently ranks 54th out of…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The number of new regulations this year passed 2,500 last week, and the Federal Register surpassed 60,000 pages. This week could see big news on…
Blog
Trade Developments on Export-Import Bank and NAFTA/USMCA
America’s trade policy landscape has some big events on the horizon. The House of Representatives will vote next week on Rep. Maxine Waters’ (D-CA) Export-Import…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
Washington had one of its best weeks in recent memory. The Nationals won the World Series, and Congress is taking the next two weeks off.
Blog
Export-Import Bank Reauthorization Update
It is busy a time right now in the Export-Import Bank reauthorization battle. Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) introduced a new bill to reauthorize the Export-Import…
Blog
Spooky Halloween Regulations
Halloween is this week. That means costumes, spooky decorations, trick-or-treating, and pumpkin spice everything. The Code of Federal Regulations contains several rules to keep everything…
Reason
Target Employees Won The ‘Fight For $15’ but Weren’t Ready for the Trade-Offs
Reason cites Senior Fellow Ryan Young on minimum wage: But the bottom line is that wage increases do not exist in a vacuum.
The Telegraph
Small Businesses Navigating Impending Minimum Wage Hikes
The Telegraph cites Senior Fellow Ryan Young on minimum wage hikes: A study this month by the pro-limited-government think tank the Competitive Enterprise…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The Washington Nationals made it to the World Series, and the White House canceled some of its newspaper subscriptions. Meanwhile, rulemaking agencies published new regulations…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
Last week’s big stories included a thickening impeachment plot, Energy Secretary Rick Perry’s resignation, and a letter written to the president of Turkey. In a…
The Washington Post
Trump Finally Acknowledges his Tariffs Could Hit Consumers
The Washington Post cites Senior Fellow Ryan Young on tariffs: “The decision to delay new tariffs on Chinese-made toys, smartphones, laptops and other…
U.S. News
2020 Election Hangs Over U.S.-China Trade Detente
U.S. News cites Senior Fellow Ryan Young on tariffs: “The administration has been saying otherwise, but it is good to see that they…
The Times of Northwest Indiana
Will Tariffs Push U.S. Economy to the Brink of Recession?
The Times of Northwest Indiana cites Senior Fellow Ryan Young on tariffs: The Competitive Enterprise Institute, in response to China’s latest tariff retaliation,…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The latest Mad Libs-style political feud involves the NBA, the television cartoon South Park, and the Chinese government. President Trump also issued a pair of…
News Release
CEI Commends Executive Action Restricting Use of Regulatory Dark Matter
The White House today announced President Trump will sign two executive orders aimed at stopping the practice of agencies using guidance documents to effectively implement…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
Non-impeachment news involved a major court ruling on net neutrality, plus a new tariff. This year’s Federal Register is on pace to surpass last year’s…
Blog
New $7.5 Billion Tariffs against European Union
The Trump administration has announced tariffs on $7.5 billion of goods from the European Union. This time, it is being done with the World Trade…
Blog
New Study: Minimum Wages Have Tradeoffs
Congress nearly increased the federal minimum wage from $7.25 to $15 per hour this year. Though the Raise the Wage Act is unlikely to pass…
News Release
Minimum Wage Increases Canceled Out by Non-Wage Losses: CEI Report
Is raising the minimum wage good for workers? A new report from the Competitive Enterprise Institute makes the case that there are serious tradeoffs lawmakers…
Study
Minimum Wages Have Tradeoffs
Raising the minimum wage is currently a top policy issue at the federal, state, and local levels. This paper opposes increases for three reasons, and…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
Congress is out of session for the next two weeks, and the impeachment investigation will likely dominate headlines for some time to come. Meanwhile, the…
Blog
Antitrust Astroturf Activism
Not too long ago, I pointed out that antitrust regulation is often gamed by special interests and rent-seekers. A recent story in The Wall Street…
Blog
Ex-Im Bank Reauthorization: Lesson in Institutional Design
For all its flaws, the Export-Import Bank’s charter gets an important thing right: the agency must be reauthorized every few years, or it will close.
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The House passed a continuing resolution to avoid a federal shutdown until November 21st. The Senate will likely follow suit this week. The 2019 Federal…
Blog
Export-Import Bank Fight Not Over Yet
The Export-Import Bank’s charter is currently set to expire on September 30. If authorization lapses, the agency will shut down. On Thursday, the House passed…