Blog
Price controls: right problem, wrong solution
In an op-ed being syndicated by Inside Sources, I take a look at Kamala Harris’s price control proposals for groceries and housing:…
Blog
This week in ridiculous regulations: marijuana scheduling and do-not-call fees
Rather than allow more housing to be built to combat rising rents, the Justice Department sued RealPage, a rent-listing service. CEI’s James Broughel…
Blog
This week in ridiculous regulations: energy labeling and FCC rules for homework
There are now more than 2,000 new final regulations on the year. The Democratic National Convention was held in Chicago. A labor market statistic…
Blog
Price signals and virtue signals
It’s a divisive election year, but all of us still have some things in common. Since the pandemic began, inflation has devalued the dollar…
Blog
This week in ridiculous regulations: Horse race integrity and threatening air cargo
Now that it’s August, agencies began publishing their Spring 2024 Unified Agenda entries for their planned regulations. Economists had a frustrating week, with…
Blog
Ten Thousand Commandments in the news
The 2024 edition of Wayne Crews’s Ten Thousand Commandments is out now. For those not familiar, the report puts together a big-picture view…
Blog
This week in ridiculous regulations: Bank hiring and salmonella frameworks
Baseless recession freakouts dominated the news cycle. The just-released 2024 edition of Ten Thousand Commandments got its share of attention as well.
Blog
Americans are open to trade
Politicians win elections by telling voters what they want to hear. Right now, both parties think voters are angry about foreign trade. But when…
Blog
This week in ridiculous regulations: Closed captioning and toothless blindcats
The new 2024 edition of Ten Thousand Commandments is out now. The Paris Olympics began. Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro stole another election. Agencies…
Blog
Jerome Powell risks the Fed’s gains against inflation
The big story from today’s Federal Reserve decision isn’t that interest rates are staying the same. It’s that the dual mandate is back.
Blog
2024 edition of Ten Thousand Commandments is out now
The federal government has a spending budget that the public can see. Every year Congress allocates a certain amount of money to each agency,…
Blog
This week in ridiculous regulations: Water heaters and children’s passports
President Biden dropped out of the race, leaving Vice President Kamala Harris as the likely Democratic nominee. The Federal Register topped 60,000 pages and…
Blog
Book review: The War on Prices by Ryan Bourne
I have reached a stage in my career where younger colleagues sometimes ask me for advice. There are a few evergreen pieces of advice…
Blog
Rent control doesn’t work. Increase housing supply instead.
President Biden will soon announce a proposed 5 percent cap on rent increases. Rent control is one of the most ridiculed economic policies…
Blog
This week in ridiculous regulations: Watermelon taxes and crash test dummies
CEI’s home distillery court case had a good week. President Biden had a bad week. Agencies issued new regulations ranging from rotorcraft to…
Blog
You have the right to a jury trial
The Supreme Court’s recent Jarkesy decision affirms that people have the right to a jury trial, even in regulatory agencies’ special in-house courts. My…
Blog
A rule for the Fed
The Washington Examiner is running a series of pieces on policies the next administration should pursue. My contribution details a way to contain…
Blog
This week in ridiculous regulations: Coke ovens and stolen firearms
It was a short week in honor of Independence Day. Speculation swirled about President Biden’s political future. Agencies issued new regulations ranging from brominate…
Blog
This week in ridiculous regulations: Rear impacts and hot air balloons
The Supreme Court issued its Jarkesy decision and restored the right to a jury trial in regulatory agencies’ in-house courts. President Biden and…
Blog
This week in ridiculous regulations: known mailers and medical gases
The Supreme Court issued an unfavorable but narrow decision in the Moore v. United States case about taxing income that was never received.
Blog
This week in ridiculous regulations: amplifiers and subsidized chickens
CEI’s Joel Zinberg released a new study on guidance document reform. The unemployment rate extended to 30 months its streak of being…
Blog
Fed hold interest rates steady, balance sheet concerns remain
The Federal Reserve decided to hold interest rates steady at its June 11-12 meeting. This is good news, but the bigger story isn’t…
Blog
David Boaz, 1953-2024
It usually begins with Ayn Rand. In my case, it began with David Boaz. David, the Cato Institute’s longtime executive vice president, passed…
Blog
This week in ridiculous regulations: Texas pimplebacks and pension funds
The 60-legislative-day Congressional Review Act deadline has likely passed, unless Congress keeps an unusually busy election year schedule. As a result, rulemaking has slowed…
Blog
This week in ridiculous regulations: food hazards and powerline permits
Donald Trump was convicted of 34 felonies in his hush money case. Apparently nothing else of note happened all week, since that was the…
Blog
This week in ridiculous regulations: electric programs and EV powertrains
The midnight rush to beat the 60-legislative-day deadline for possible Congressional Review Act repeals appears to be slowing down, but Federal Register activity is…
Blog
New CEI book: Adam Smith’s guide to life, loveliness, and the modern economy
Adam Smith is 300 years old, and CEI is 40 years old. To celebrate this dual milestone, I edited an essay collection about…
Blog
This week in ridiculous regulations: Drain tiles and garbage fires
Inflation remains stubbornly high. President Biden announced a round of tariffs on EVs, solar panels, and medical supplies from China. The Biden administration…
Blog
Three strikes against Biden EV tariffs
Over at the syndicate InsideSources, I have an op-ed explaining three problems with President Biden’s new tariffs on $18 billion worth of EVs,…
Blog
This week in ridiculous regulations: Housing subsidies and non-compete clauses
The Federal Register had what may have been its first 4,000-page week. It is on pace to exceed 112,000 pages for the year, or…