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News Release
Inflation increased in June, tariff troubles likely cause: CEI analysis
Inflation rose 0.3 percent across all sectors in June, marking the beginning of Trump’s tariffs’ effect on prices. CEI senior economist Ryan Young…
News Release
Report advocates responsible investment, rejects crony subsidies
Today, the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) released a new report on the importance of reinstating responsible investment practices by rejecting corporate welfare strategies and…
Blog
Big business is a myth
Many policy discussions, from antitrust to telecom policy, focus on how large businesses should be. Almost no one asks the big questions. Why are businesses…
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Blog
Deregulate to Speed Recovery from ‘Creative Destruction’ of Trade and Innovation
Government regulation limits the ability of individuals and businesses to recover from normal economic setbacks.
Blog
The Super Bowl: Not Just for Football Fans
The Super Bowl is perennially one of the most-watched TV events around the world, so it’s no surprise that millions of people find reasons to…
Blog
Harry Potter and the City Council Chambers
The MacIver Institute documents the temptation of local governments to spend taxpayer money on “economic development” projects and tourist events.
Blog
Burns Night Cheers
Tonight, friends at home and abroad gather both for Burns Night and the International I, Whiskey Watch Party to salute the individuals— freedom fighters, innovators,…
Blog
Learn Liberty Asks: Are Millennials Actually Lazy?
Jared Meyer, discusses his book "Disinherited: How Washington Is Betraying America’s Young" with Learn Liberty’s Evan Swarztrauber.
Blog
Where Have All the Startups Gone? New Research from eBay and EIG
Recently eBay’s public policy team here in Washington, D.C. presented a fascinating program on economic growth and new business start-ups.
Blog
‘I, Whiskey’ Honored at Southern Shorts Film Festival
At the Southern Shorts Awards in Roswell, Georgia last weekend, I, Whiskey: The Human Spirit made its big screen debut as one of the top…
Blog
“I, Whiskey” on the Festival Circuit
This weekend the producers of the CEI film "I, Whiskey: The Human Spirit" will be in Roswell, Georgia for the Southern Shorts Film Festival and Awards Presentation…
Blog
Chamber of Commerce CEO Lays Out 2017 Agenda
U.S. Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Thomas Donohue gave his annual “State of American Business Address” to a packed hall at the Chamber’s H…
Blog
A Federal Gift Clause Could Help ‘Drain the Swamp’
If President-elect Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress are serious about coming through on the campaign promise to “drain the swamp,” it would serve them…
Forbes
Trump Must Take On The Cronyism Challenge
For President-elect Donald Trump to deliver on his “make American great again,” promise, economic growth must again exceed today’s anemic rate. Reforming tax policy, reducing…
Foundation for Economic Education
Lower Costs, Not Regulations, Will Save the Environment
I have a long bus commute to work in Washington DC. Most mornings I am engrossed in reading the latest news or a scholarly article,…
Blog
Join the ‘I, Whiskey’ International Watch Party
After a successful Virtual Watch Party campaign focused on fans in the United States, we’ve now launched an International Watch Party for our friends around…
Daily Caller
Activists Urge Trump To Stop Obama’s Anti-Business ‘Midnight Litigation’
The Daily Caller reports on a letter CEI and other organizations sent to Mike Pence. Obama’s agencies are poised to file economy-stunting environmental…
News Release
GM’s Deceptive Advertising: Company First Claimed It Repaid Bailout Money, Now Admits It Didn’t
Washington, D.C., September 20, 2010 – Contrary to claims by General Motors earlier this year, the company has now admitted that it did not repay its…
Blog
The Libertarian Holiday Gift Guide
Cheers to the brilliant production team at Reason TV, who have provided some welcome comedy this holiday season with their new video, “The Libertarian Holiday…
Blog
5 Great Books on Politics and Public Policy from 2016
A lot of interesting books on politics, economics, and public policy were published over the last twelve months. It can be difficult, though, finding the gems…
Blog
Some Advice for Trump Appointees
Your role in the new administration is to propose ways of restoring limited government – by privatization, deregulation, extending property rights, and taking on the…
The Claremont Review of Books
Bullying Culture
Wall Street Journal columnist Kimberley Strassel has written an insightful, important book on the Left’s efforts to drive market-friendly voices from the public square. A…
Tulsa World
Credit Reports Used by Insurance Companies
Tulsa World
What’s the Best Way to Create More Jobs?
Unleash the power of small business. The US Senate just passed a bill called the Small Business Jobs and Credit Act. The thrust of the…
Brietbart
A Better ‘Pledge’: Congress Shall Make No Law
When I think of a “Pledge” I’m reminded of my fraternity days and being hazed and lightly humiliated. House Republicans are offering their “Pledge to…
Brietbart
The Progressive Era’s Derailment of Classical Liberal Evolution
It is true that where a considerable part of the costs incurred are external costs from the point of view of the acting individuals…
Blog
How Ridesharing Platforms Help the Economy
We have been saying for a while that ridesharing platforms like Lyft are different from traditional transportation firms, not just in the technology they use,…
Blog
Ratios, Not People: The Wrong Approach to Inequality
Thomas Piketty, the best-selling author of Capital in the 21st Century, has a new paper on economic inequality with coauthors Emmanuel Saez and Gabriel Zucman.
Foundation for Economic Education
San Francisco Turns against Its Own Startup Airbnb
San Francisco is the birthplace of Airbnb. Even so, politicians in this city have created some of the most restrictive home-sharing regulations in the…
Blog
RealClear Radio Hour: Western and Soviet Politics
In this episode, historian Andrew Roberts and Russian émigré Alexander Markovsky compare Western and Soviet politics.
Study
Free to Prosper
The 115th Congress is poised to tackle regulatory reform. Check out CEI's recommendations to move America toward economic growth, prosperity, and liberty.
Foundation for Economic Education
How AirBNB Awakens Dormant Capital
Every day, modern liberal economies create wealth. That wealth translates into better health, better education, art, literature, and the finer things of life. We only…
Independent Journal Review
It’s Time For The New President And Congress To Think Big When It Comes To Cutting Government Waste
Political revolutions don’t come around often: Margaret Thatcher in Britain in 1979, the fall of the Berlin Wall in Eastern Europe in 1990, the Contract…
Blog
Free Market Opportunities for the Trump Administration
This election has given us one more demonstration that knowledge is dispersed and “trusting the experts” to know the future is foolish. The unexpected success…
Blog
RealClear Radio Hour: The Nanny State Down Under and the Robot Revolution
In this week’s episode, Topher Field discusses lifestyle regulation madness Down Under and Katherine Mangu-Ward ushers in the robot revolution.
Blog
Audience Reactions to “I, Whiskey”
Since releasing the new film I, Whiskey: The Human Spirit last month, we’ve had an excellent response from people around the country.
Foundation for Economic Education
An Existential Threat to the UK’s Sharing Economy
A UK Employment Tribunal has ruled that drivers who use the Uber platform should be regarded as employees. This qualifies them for various statutory…
Blog
Finding the Perfect Quote for “I, Whiskey”
How would the film end? I, Pencil began with a memorable quotation. We would end I, Whiskey with a provocative one. Give the audience something…
Blog
Learning Lessons from Reed’s ‘Real Heroes’
About a dozen years ago, I developed a habit of asking the same question when I interviewed someone for a job. Typically, about two-thirds of…
Blog
Meet the Stars of “I, Whiskey”
CEI’s new film I, Whiskey: The Human Spirit is about freedom and innovation, but also about making human connections in the marketplace.
Blog
Dueling Narratives on the AT&T-Time Warner “Mega Merger”
This weekend AT&T and Time Warner announced a merger deal and it didn't take long for critics on the left to begin making concerned statements…
Blog
RealClear Radio Hour: The Spirit of 1776 and the Reality of War
In this episode, West Point Professor, Dr. Robert McDonald discusses Thomas Jefferson’s legacy and renowned collector and founder of the Museum of World War II,…
Blog
RealClear Radio Hour: American Cuisine and Whiskey
This week on RealClear Radio Hour, Paul Freedman and Rick Wasmund treat us to delicious courses of American cuisine and whiskey.
Blog
The Inspiration Behind the New Film “I, Whiskey”
I think it can be said all films have an unexpected Genesis, an unlikely, improbable trajectory. I, Whiskey was no exception.
Investor's Business Daily
‘I, Whiskey’: Free Markets And The Human Spirit
In a political season that's seen a lot of skepticism about big business and trade, it can be good to step back and remind…
Blog
New Study Explores the Morality and Virtues of Capitalism
Fred Smith's new study on the morality of capitalism discusses how we think about corporations as economic actors.
Blog
Facebook Makes the Case for “Free Basics” Internet Access
Facebook is lobbying the White House for the government’s blessing to offer its “Free Basics” service in the United States, according to a story reported…
Blog
Early Reviews Are in for “I, Whiskey”
The long wait is over – CEI has released the full version of the new film I, Whiskey: The Human Spirit online.
Blog
The Film That Came before “I, Whiskey”
Next Wednesday, October 12th, CEI will release the new short film I, Whiskey: The Human Spirit.
Blog
Federal Communications Commission Delays Vote on Cable Box Rules
How would the proposed rules change cable set-top boxes?…
Blog
RealClear Radio Hour: Penniless Presidencies and Fashioning America
This week, we discuss two new books covering the national debt crisis and political values with authors Dr. Alan Axelrod and Cathy Lynn Taylor.
Cato Journal
Review of “Markets without Limits”
Are there some things that should be beyond the market, that is, which should not be permitted to be bought and sold? Jason Brennan and Peter Jaworski…
Blog
RealClear Radio Hour: Sensible Science and Authenticity
On this week’s RealClear Radio Hour, Tracey Brown weighs risk, reward, and science, and Glenn Carroll describes authenticity’s paradox.
Blog
New Drug Price Proposal Light on Competition, Heavy on Bureaucracy
Last Friday, Hillary Clinton announced a new plan to “respond to unjustified price hikes” on certain pharmaceutical drugs.
Forbes
Brexit Planners Should Look To The U.S. For Inspiration
In June, British voters voted to leave the European Union, whose bureaucracy had imposed alien laws and regulations on them for decades. The EU system…
Blog
31 Is the Loneliest Number… on the CEI Calendar
We just realized that August 31st is missing from CEI's 2016 Cartoon Calendar.
Blog
RealClear Radio Hour: Budding CEOs, Women, and Politics
On this week’s episode, Jeff Sandefer tells how children younger than 10 are wowing Shark Tank investors and Sarah Skwire compares the feminism of free…
Blog
RealClear Radio Hour: Taxpayers on the Hook
This week on RealClear Radio Hour, Michael Tanner tallies Uncle Sam’s ballooning entitlement debt and Romina Boccia pulls back the cover on the Beltway crony…
Forbes
Capitalism and the Candidates
As a longtime advocate for capitalism, I’ve been considering the prospects for free market ideas in a White House presided over by either of the…
Blog
Celebrating Two Great Economists: Bruce Yandle and Julian Simon
I’d like to second my colleague Fred’s birthday wishes for the distinguished economist Bruce Yandle of Clemson University.
Blog
Happy Birthday to Economist Bruce Yandle
Bruce Yandle – a great economic scholar at Clemson University for many years and recipient of the 2016 Julian Simon Award – reaches his 83rd…
Blog
“Comeback” Documents Real-life Americans Overcoming Adversity
House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI), and the nonprofit group Opportunity Lives recently hosted a screening of Comeback, a documentary series highlighting the strengths of American…
Blog
RealClear Radio Hour: Social Justice and Overcriminalization
This week on RealClear Radio Hour we look at two sides of criminal justice reform—from encouraging entrepreneurial hustle and productive reentry into society to reining…
Blog
Reason’s Bastiat Journalism Prize Celebrates Writers Who Advance Freedom
Leftist intellectual and media bias can be as disheartening and maddening as it is relentless. So thank goodness for the Reason Foundation and its annual…
Blog
RealClear Radio Hour: Freedom Rising
This week’s RealClear Radio Hour was recorded in Las Vegas at FreedomFest 2016, the trade show for liberty.
Forbes
Antitrust Regulation And The 2016 Party Platform Debates
Having never been a fan of antitrust protectionism, I found it interesting that (according to Bloomberg) while Democrats are highlighting antitrust in their…
Blog
RealClear Radio Hour: U.S. Constitutionalist and Soviet Dissident
In this episode of RealClear Radio Hour, we contrast constitutionalism and socialism.
Blog
Politics and Economics Collide with Pokémon Go
It seems strange to think it’s been barely a week since Pokémon Go became the dominant pop culture phenomenon of the summer. Publications better known…
Blog
Kim Strassel Offers Prescient Look at Political ‘Intimidation Game’
Prescience is an odd quality to attribute to a book-length treatment of recent history. Nonetheless, The Intimidation Game by Kimberly Strassel adheres closely to Antonio’s…
Blog
Five Freedoms We Defend This Fourth
How are you celebrating Independence Day? Whether your plans involve a fireworks display or a barbecue with friends, we hope that this 4th of July…
Blog
Will the Sharing Economy Give Us Greater Economic Mobility?
Last night the R Street Institute sponsored a fascinating policy panel here in Washington, D.C., “Boost or Barrier? Upward mobility in the on-demand economy.”…
Blog
Bill Frezza Wins Economic Writing Prize
Bill Frezza, host of RealClear Radio Hour and CEI fellow, was awarded the Foundation for Economic Education’s 2016 Beth Hoffman prize for economic writing for…
Blog
RealClear Radio Hour: Innovation Economy & State Fiscal Breakdown
This week on RealClear Radio Hour, guests Garrett Johnson and Eileen Norcross explain the importance of developing a more technologically nimble and fiscally responsible government.
Blog
Religious and Economic Liberty Are Intertwined
The massacre in Orlando was a tragic reminder that we’re at war—against hate, against extremism, and against intolerance. Although there are many contributing factors…
Blog
Coming Soon: International Mayors for Inconvenient Travel
While we wait to see whether Gov. Andrew Cuomo will sign legislation targeting home-share listings in New York, the governmental response to the sharing economy’s…
Blog
Building on the Optimism of “Uber-Positive” Attitudes
There’s a new resource for understanding the state of play between politics and developments in the sharing economy, the pleasantly slim volume by the Manhattan…
Blog
Why Shouldn’t the Energy Department Run the Entire Economy?
New Energy Department standards for dehumidifiers promise massive benefits. Depending on which set of numbers you prefer (the link goes to the Energy Department’s own…
Blog
Export-Import Bank Drama Continues
The Senate’s main business right now is the annual Defense Appropriations bill. The Export-Import Bank, or Ex-Im for short, might become part of that bill.
Blog
RealClear Radio Hour: Common Sense Economics
At CEI’s 2016 annual dinner—A Night in Casablanca!—in DC, I caught up with three interesting gentlemen for a dose of common sense economics.
Coalition to Save Local Businesses
CEI: Heavily Scrutinized NLRB Joint Employer Standard Heads to Court
Most people can pretty easily tell you who their boss is, but the Obama administration has made that a difficult question. In a decision last…
Blog
What’s Right with Business Schools?
Jane Shaw of the Pope Center for Higher Education Policy has a compelling new commentary out this week on the state of business schools.
Blog
FCC Could end up “Protecting” Consumers from Cheaper Internet Access
Net neutrality proponents have seen their lines splinter over the issue of “zero rating,” the practice of not counting data used to access certain sites…
Wall Street Journal
Amnesia? We Remember the Lack of a Cushion
As longtime critics of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac who warned early on that they could destabilize the financial system, we were shocked by Douglas…
Foundation for Economic Education
DC Takes Aim at Airbnb, Hits Existing Rental Industry
Washington, DC’s new regulations on Airbnb and similar businesses could end up killing off old-fashioned bed-and-breakfasts. Airbnb, the service that allows owners to rent out…
Study
Toward a Thinker/Doer Alliance: A Grand Strategy for Liberty Advocates
By Fred L. Smith, Jr. Director, Center for Advancing Capitalism Speech delivered at Hillsdale College Hillsdale, Michigan…
Investor's Business Daily
Inequality Is A Matter Of People, Not Numbers
From presidential candidates on down, everyone worries about economic inequality these days. In an era of stagnant job and wage growth, that’s a fair concern.
Forbes
What CEOs Should Be Saying About Inequality
Despite living at a time of unprecedented decreases in poverty around the world, we’re witnessing a seemingly unprecedented increase in worry about income…
Blog
Raise, Don’t Level: New CEI Papers on Inequality and Poverty Relief
Economic inequality is one of today’s defining issues. How to address it? Iain Murray and I offer an unconventional approach in a new two-part CEI…
Newsmax
Let’s Fix Crowdfunding so Middle-Class Investors Can Profit
More than four years and one month after Congress passed and President Barack Obama signed the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act of 2012, the…
Blog
Thomas Piketty’s False Argument for Expanding the Government
Left-wing economist Thomas Piketty is treated like a “rock star” by many progressives for giving a veneer of legitimacy to the economic myths they…
Forbes
When Anything Could Be The ‘Next Tobacco’
When political operators win big with a clever legal strategy, you can be sure it’ll be used again. One strategy that paid off handsomely for…
Forbes
The Sharing Economy For Dummies (Or Politicians)
Forbes discusses what policy makers should keep in mind about the sharing economy with Iain Murray. Iain Murray, Competitive Enterprise Institute:…
New York Times
Monopolies, Like Google, Are Innovators, Which Is Good for Consumers
Last week, the European Commission brought new antitrust charges against Google, alleging the company unfairly favors its own services on smartphones running its Android operating…
Blog
FSOC Misunderstands Leverage, Threatens Risk Management
The Financial Stability Oversight Council recently released its “Update on Review of Asset Management Products and Activities,” in which it questions “how certain asset…
Daily Caller
Be The Earth Day You Want To See
With Earth Day upon us, millions of Americans will be looking for a way to observe the event and celebrate the planet’s bounty and resources.
Blog
Business Leaders Mount the Barricades
This has been a good week for capitalist backbone. As Kim Strassel discusses in the Wall Street Journal today, we’ve seen two high profile…
Blog
CEOs Confront Anti-Capitalist Rhetoric
Another CEO of a big American company has spoken up about the charge that he and his employees are “destroying the moral fabric” of…
Blog
How to Address Income Inequality
Over at the Foundation for Economic Education, Iain Murray and I give a short preview of our two forthcoming CEI papers on income inequality…
Foundation for Economic Education
Why Is the Middle Class So Angry?
The middle class is angry. Feeling left out of sharing in the nation’s prosperity the way they used to, they are increasingly turning to…
Blog
Is GE a Capitalist Good Guy or a Corporate Bad Guy?
General Electric CEO Jeff Immelt has an interesting op-ed today in the Washington Post, hitting back against charges that his company is “destroying…
Daily Signal
8 Questions for PayPal on Its Decision to Boycott North Carolina
The Daily Signal discusses a North Carolina law with Hans Bader. The new North Carolina law also requires cities and localities to follow…
Law360
Alaska Air, Virgin America Face Bumpy Antitrust Ride
CEI Fellow Marc Scribner speaks to Law360 about a proposed merger between Alaska Air and Virgin America: “If you look at their…
Palmetto Business Daily
Land use expert warns of property rights infringement by “unelected bureaucrats” on the Charleston BAR
The Palmetto Business Daily discusses property rights infringement by the Charleston Board of Architectural Review with Marc Scribner. “The unelected bureaucrats on the…
