Featured Posts
National Review
President Reagan’s argument that these regulations are unnecessary and harmful to consumers has proven to be prescient.
They’re the regulations that literally hit home, and rarely in a good way. The Department of Energy sets energy efficiency standards for just…
Blog
No free lunch: Price controls won’t make groceries more affordable
When Americans go to the grocery store, they expect to find food and drinks. Lately, many are encountering something else: sticker shock. According to…
News Release
CEI celebrates important free market leaders and anniversaries: Our Words
Today, in celebration of the 250th anniversary of Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nations and the Competitive Enterprise Institute’s 42nd birthday, CEI is proud to…
Search Posts
Study
Ten Thousand Commandments 2009
Wayne Crews' annual accounting of the hidden taxes of regulation.
Newsletter
California’s Budget Woes, Sotomayor’s Nomination and Insurance Information
State legislators in California face a multi-billion dollar budget shortfall. Political observers praise President Obama for his nomination of Sonia Sotomayor as potentially the first…
Investors' Business Daily
America’s Hidden Trillion-Dollar Tax
We need a breather to take it all in: TARP, a $787 billion stimulus bill and a projected $1.845 trillion budget deficit. But lost among…
Newsletter
The Credit Card Bill of Rights, Chrysler’s Bankruptcy and Carbon Trading
President Obama signs the credit card “bill of rights” into law. A federal bankruptcy judge prepares to rule on Chrysler’s financial future. Carbon trading is…
Newsletter
Energy Rationing, Credit Cards and Car-Sharing in Maryland
The energy rationing bill sponsored by Reps. Henry Waxman (D-CA) and Ed Markey (D-MA) is approved by the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
Nashua Telegraph
Economists Say Stimulus Misses Mark
News Release
Energy Rationing Bill Passes House Committee
Energy Rationing Bill Passes House Committee Plan Would Take Trillions from Consumers, Transfer to Big Business Special Interests May 22, 2009, Washington, D.C.
Newsletter
Unemployment Numbers, Mileage Rules and Computer Recycling
Unemployment reaches its highest level since 1983. President Obama announces an increase in auto mileage requirements for new cars. Computer giant Dell announces it will…
Nashua Telegraph
I’m All Right, Barack: The Perils of a Nationalized Car Maker
President Obama’s takeover of General Motors is a disaster in the making. Not only is it bad for GM, it also sets terrible legal…
Nashua Telegraph
Supreme Court To Hear Sarbanes-Oxley Challenge
A major government abuse of power is about to get much-needed scrutiny, thanks to the Supreme Court, which this week decided to hear…
Newsletter
New Gas Mileage Rules, Intel’s Legal Issues and India’s National Election
President Obama announces strict new rules on gas mileage for new cars. After being fined $1.4 billion for alleged antitrust violations in Europe, Intel could…
Letters
Lehrer Response Letter to Federal Insurance Regulation Not a Panacea
Full Document Available in PDF To: Congressional Staff and Members From: Eli…
Newsletter
Cap and Trade, GM’s Bankruptcy and Whole Foods’ Woes
Democrats formally unveil a 932-page bill to restrict greenhouse gas emissions. General Motor Corp.’s proposed bankruptcy filing pits union retirees against GM investors. Profits for…
News Release
Supreme Court to Hear Challenge to Sarbanes-Oxley Accounting Board
The Supreme Court today announced it would hear a case brought by the Competitive Enterprise Institute and the Free Enterprise Fund challenging the constitutionality of…
Newsletter
Cap and Trade, Freddie Mac’s Losses and Hulu’s Success Story
Democrats push “cap and trade” global warming regulation in the House of Representatives. Housing giant Freddie Mac reports a $10 billion loss for the first…
Newsletter
Supreme Court on Financial Regulation, Chrysler Closes Dealerships and Greenhouse Gases in Congress
The Supreme Court prepares to announce an important verdict on financial regulation. Chrysler plans to eliminate nearly 800 dealerships. Democratic leaders move forward with legislation…
Newsletter
Al Gore’s 1984, Intel’s Antitrust Fine and Cap and Trade’s Economic Consequences
A new video from CEI parodies Apple Computer’s famous ‘1984’ TV ad with Al Gore and his global warming theories as Big Brother. The European…
Newsletter
Europe Investigates Intel, Obama Explodes the Deficit and Minnesota Jumps on the Banned Wagon
European antitrust officials prepare to rule in an investigation of Intel’s microchip marketing practices. The White House estimates that the deficit will explode to $1.8…
News Release
European Antitrust Ruling on Intel Threatens Future of Innovation
European Union authorities are reportedly on the verge of announcing that Intel has been found guilty of abusing its dominant market position by practicing so…
Newsletter
Chrysler’s Bankruptcy, Small Businesses Fight Back and New York’s War on Bottled Water
Financial analysts size up what Chrysler’s entrance into Chapter 11 bankruptcy means for customers and employees. Small business owners band together to oppose new union…
Nashua Telegraph
Hulu.com May Be Target of Antitrust Attack
Newsletter
The War on Cockroaches, Consumer Credit Shrinks and the Future of Internet Gambling
New York State officials move to limit sale of anti-insect “bug bombs” to consumers. Economists chart a record drop in consumer credit. Rep. Barney Frank…
Ecomerce Times
Google and Antitrust
Ecomerce Times
Banks Aren’t Bridges
The logic of the recent bank stress tests seems unassailable — bridges may fail, so may banks. But bridges are physical constructs. Centuries of…
Ecomerce Times
Just What Is Waxman-Markey For?
As the House of Representatives girds to debate the Waxman-Markey energy and global warming bill, no one seems to be asking the most…
Newsletter
Chrysler’s Future, Chevron in Ecuador and Flex-Fuel Cars on the Road
A bankruptcy judge approves Chrysler’s request to start spending $4.5 billion in government loans. Ecuador sues Chevron for $27 billion over alleged environmental damage from…
News Release
Barney Frank Internet Gambling Bill Aims at Legalization
Barney Frank Internet Gambling Bill Aims at Legalization “A Step in the Right Direction,” Analyst Says Washington, DC, May 6, 2009 – A bill to…
Newsletter
Cap and Trade Compromise, the Return of Bed Bugs and Jack Kemp, RIP
The White House floats the idea of allowing new oil and gas drilling in exchange for support of a cap and trade system for greenhouse…
Ecomerce Times
GM Troubles Repeat British Auto Industry Mistakes of the 1970s
General Motors is now co-owned by the American taxpayer and labor unions. As a Briton, I find this development astonishing. It repeats…
Newsletter
Consumer Credit, Social Security and Swine Flu
The House of Representatives votes to limit credit card fees and interest rates. President Obama endorses raising Social Security taxes. Vice President Biden advises Americans…
Townhall
Green Jobs: All Pain for No Gain
It is said that there is a scientific consensus on global warming. There isn’t, but there is an economic consensus that policies based on…
Newsletter
Credit Card Rules, Obama’s First 100 Days and the Auto Bailout
The House of Representatives is expected to vote today on new regulations for credit card companies. Political observers judge the progress of Obama’s first 100…
News Release
Vice President Uses Swine Flu as Anti-Stimulus
The Competitive Enterprise Institute calls on Vice President Biden to repudiate remarks made this morning on “The Today Show” about air travel in the context…
News Release
“Credit Card Bill of Rights” Passed Today by the U.S. House of Representatives
Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:"";…
Townhall
100 Days: Significant or Just Media Preening?
Townhall
Back from the Dead
The Employee Free Choice Act is dead, long live the Employee Free Choice Act. On Tuesday Sen. Arlen Specter D-PA announced he will be switching…
News Release
CEI Comment on Obama 100 Days
Obama Bombs on Spending, Energy in First100 Days, Hope for Progress on Regulations, Credit Crisis CEI Comments on Obama 100 Days and What’s Ahead…
RealClear Markets
Fix Social Security, Ease the Credit Crisis
Remember the looming Social Security crisis? If you don’t, you’re not alone. The credit crisis and economic downturn have monopolized public attention to…
Financial Times
Fed’s policies contradict each other
Sir, Henry Kaufman frets that “libertarian dogma led the Fed astray” (April 28). Congress, not free-market ideology, is the real culprit. One reason…
Newsletter
Cybersecurity, Chrysler in Bankruptcy and Union Finances
A congressional investigation of security breaches at the Pentagon targets popular file sharing programs like LimeWire. After extensive bailout efforts, Chrysler moves to file for…
Financial Times
GM vs. GGP: Bankruptcy the Way It Ought to Be
On the surface, given the economic turmoil we’ve had, there was nothing that remarkable about the bankruptcy of shopping mall owner General…
Newsletter
Freddie Mac, Solar Energy and an Insurance Debate
The suicide of Freddie Mac’s Chief Financial Officer raises further questions about the company and the federal bailout program. Texas is poised to increase the…
Financial Times
Obama Sells Out Union Workers
During his presidential campaign, Barack Obama promised accountability and transparency. Last Tuesday, his administration broke that promise to yet another group. Department of Labor Secretary…
Financial Times
Where Were Liberal Dems During Bush Bailouts
Recent tea party protests targeted wasteful government spending, such as President Barack Obama’s $800 billion stimulus package, which the Congressional Budget Office says will…
Financial Times
Dodd to revise CARD proposal
Newsletter
Online Privacy, Credit Cards and Organ Donation
Members of the House Technology & Internet Subcommittee hear testimony on alleged abuses of consumer privacy by internet marketers. President Obama meets with credit card…
Newsletter
Healthy Eating, Big Labor Fights Itself and the War on Mining
A new Food and Drug Administration study sparks debate over the health benefits of eating fish. Factions of the labor union known as UNITE-HERE fight…
Financial Times
AIG head’s $3M in Goldman stock raises apparent conflict of interest
“It’s not much of a stretch to say that under Liddy’s tenure, the company’s and taxpayers’ money has been looted to pay off AIG’s business…
News Release
Statement on Obama Meeting with Credit Card Execs
Statement from John Berlau, Director of CEI’s Center for Investors on President Obama’s White House meeting with Credit Card Executives. Instead of meeting…
Newsletter
Bailout Power Grab, Abuse of Power in New York and Rising Sea Level Panic
White House economic advisers plan to convert government holdings in bailed out banks to common stock, increasing direct government control. New York State insurance chief…
Newsletter
Hemispheric Diplomacy, Greenhouse Gases and Anti-Tax Protests
President Obama attends the Summit of the Americas with other leaders from North and South America. The Environmental Protection Agency declares greenhouse gases to be…
Newsletter
CO2, Microsoft’s Antitrust Overseers and Anti-Tax Activists
The Environmental Protection Agency prepares to release a document that could require the federal government to regulate emissions of carbon dioxide. The Justice Department extends…
Financial Times
The Tea Party Protesters are Right
Tea party protests questioned the constitutionality of some of the massive bailouts over the past year, which amount to trillions of dollars. That drew…
Newsletter
Anti-Tax Tea Parties, College Quotas and Job-Killing Regulations
People across the nation rally to oppose high taxes and government spending in the spirit of the original Boston Tea Party. President Obama’s apparent support…
Financial Times
Upset Over Offsets
When the President proposed his budget, he tried a gambit aimed atfoisting a new energy tax on the American people without serious debatein Congress. It…
Newsletter
Tax Day Protests, Small Car Safety and Union Organizing
People across the country gather to protest high taxes and excessive government spending. A new crash test study finds that smaller cars are especially vulnerable…
Financial Times
1,000,000 Tea Bags Find a Home
After park officials turned away Tea Party protesters' 1 million tea bags, the press conference was moved to the Competitive Enterprise Institute. We were happy…
American Spectator
A Good Time to Start Liquidating
The announcements by Senators Arlen Specter (R-Penn.) and BlancheLincoln (D-Ark.) that they intend to vote against cloture on theso-called Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) has…
Newsletter
Justice Ginsburg’s Inconsistency, the Continuing Pirate Threat and Tax Day Tea Parties
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg defends the use of foreign legal codes in deciding U.S. Supreme Court verdicts. Somali pirates renew their attacks, seizing four new…
American Spectator
Food Safety Law and Small Producers, Cont’d
News Release
April 15th Tax Burden Worsened by Hidden Taxes
April 15th Tax Burden Worsened by Hidden Taxes Americans Hit by Excessive Federal Regulations, Threatened by New Energy Rationing Washington, D.C., April 14,…
Newsletter
Somali Pirates, GM Executives and FDA Regulators
The U.S. military considers attacking Somali pirate bases. Treasury officials instruct General Motors to plan for bankruptcy. The Food and Drug Administration reconsiders its ban…
American Spectator
Deregulate to Stimulate
Few Americans are aware of the massive scope of the federal regulatory enterprise. It is hardly common knowledge that 4,004 rules from nearly 70…
American Spectator
Green Job Self-Destruction
In your article “Hopes for climate treaty set back by G20’s weasel words”, 5 April, you refer to a study by the University…
Washington Times
Don’t change interchange
Overstock.com President Jonathan E. Johnson III overlooks several important facts regarding credit card interchange fees (“Retailers, consumers squeezed,” Opinion, Wednesday). Much of the $48…
Newsletter
Banning Bottled Water, Remembering Jack Dreyfus and Greenhouse Gas Legislation
Activists campaign for college campuses to ban sales of bottled water. Legendary investor Jack Dreyfus passes away at age 95. Reps. Henry Waxman (D-CA) and…
Washington Times
Geithner promises repeat of Bush’s regulatory mistakes
Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner’s testimony before Congress last weekrightly angered a lot of conservatives, small-government leftists, libertariansand other friends of the free market. And Geithner’s…
Washington Times
Lies Upon Ledbetter Lies
Dallas News
UNITE-HERE’s pressure campaign against a Dallas city project
Letters
Letter to Senators Dodd and Shelby, and Congressmen Frank and Bachus regarding National Regulatory Modernization
Full Document Available in PDF This letter written to Senators Dodd and Shelby, and…
Dallas News
Government’s Mistakes Have Deepened This Recession
Steven Gjerstad and Vernon Smith suggest one unexplored aspect of our financial crisis: the role of egalitarian policies. To see this, note…
Dallas News
H.R. 875, Food Safety Modernization Act of 2009
Newsletter
Modified Mortgages, Unions Losses and Hurricane Insurance
The White House pushes mortgage companies to “modify” more home loans, while the number of defaults continues to rise. Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) announces she…
Dallas News
Hoover’s Deficit Spending
William Hettinger [letters, April 3] rewrote history by falsely claiming that “President Herbert Hoover’s response” to the 1929 stockmarket crash “was to balance the…
Newsletter
G20 Stimulus, A Plan for Carbon Dioxide and Mark-to-Market Reforms
World leaders pledge to spend an additional $1 trillion to stimulate the global economy. Global warming activists call for policies to lower the concentration of…
Dallas News
EEOC Willfully Violated Pay Law, Arbitrator Rules
News Release
Statement on the Progress of the London G20 Summit
Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:"";…
News Release
Statement on the Expected Vote to Relax Mark-to-Market, or “Fair Value,” Accounting Mandates
Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:"";…
Spectator
Obama’s Inauspicious Start
Spectator
Americorps Plan Will Waste Money on Ideological Causes
Despite exploding deficits, President Obama and congressional leaders are backing a $5.7 billion “national service” boondoggle. Obama’s proposed budgets, which break…
News Release
Comment on Green Jobs, Economy
Don’t Count on Green Jobs to Bail out the Economy Government Spending on the Environment Not a Path to Prosperity Washington,…
Newsletter
Countering Earth Hour, Mismanagement at Freddie Mac and Good News for Coal
Lights go out around the world in observance of “Earth Hour”. Regulators push mortgage giant Freddie Mac to…
News Release
CEI Comment on Obama Firing of GM CEO Wagoner
Washington, D.C., March 30, 2009— John Berlau Director, Center for Investors and Entrepreneurs…
Newsletter
A Reverse Tea Party, Geithner’s Insurance Plan and Trade War with Mexico
Environmental activists pour bottled water into Boston Harbor to protest “water privatization.” Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner proposes a vast expansion of federal regulation of financial…
Newsletter
AIG’s Tarnished Brand, The White House Vegetable Garden and Global Warming Negotiations
The damage to AIG’s corporate brand may hinder its ability to repay bailout loans from taxpayers. First Lady Michelle Obama announces the creation of a…
Spectator
Geithner’s Power Grab: Not All Bad
Testifying before the House of Representatives today, Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner asked for vast new powers to oversee banks, investment houses, hedge funds, and…
Washington Examiner
SEIU’s Advocacy for Card Check
News Release
CEI Analysis of Geithner Insurance Proposals
Testifying before Congress today, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner will propose broad new federal oversight for a variety of financial services, including insurance. Analysts at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, a…
Newsletter
Carbon Tariffs, Union Organizing and Geithner’s Toxic Plan
The House Ways and Means Committee holds a hearing on the impact of global warming on international trade. Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA) announces that he…
Washington Examiner
Taxpayers Getting Hosed By The Collapse Of AIG’s Insurance Business
News Release
Collapse of Insurance, AIG Could Lead to Tax Hikes
The collapse of state-regulated insurance subsidiaries could result in a significant tax hike for nearly all Americans, warns an insurance policy expert with the Competitive…
Study
Card Check Double Standard
Unions’ Hypocrisy on the Secret Ballot…
Newsletter
Toxic Assets, NIMBYs and Fish Pedicures
Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner unveils a plan to sell off “toxic assets” as part of the federal bank bailout. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce launches…
News Release
The Two Faces of Big Labor
Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:"";…
Study
The Employee Free Choice Act Is Anything But
A Comparison of Labor Organizing Today vs. under EFCA…
Newsletter
Obama’s Debt, Wall Street Bonuses and the Economy vs. the Environment
A new congressional report estimates that President Obama’s spending proposals will produce over $9 trillion in debt. Debate continues over the plan to tax some…
News Release
CEI Statement on Latest Geithner Bailout Plan
CEI Comments on Latest Geithner Bailout Plan…
Washington Examiner
The Breaking up of Money-Pit Behemoths if Necessary
Washington Examiner
Herbert Obama: Obama’s protectionism and tax increases compared to Herbert Hoover’s
Newsletter
Celebrating Human Achievement, Taxing AIG Bonuses and Cap and Trade in the Senate
Environmental activists encourage cities to celebrate “Earth Hour” by turning off lights for an hour on March 28th. The House of Representatives approves a 90%…
Staff & Scholars
Clyde Wayne Crews
Fred L. Smith Fellow in Regulatory Studies
- Business and Government
- Consumer Freedom
- Deregulation
Richard Morrison
Senior Fellow
- Antitrust
- Business and Government
- Capitalism and Free Enterprise
Ryan Young
Senior Economist and Director of Publications
- Antitrust
- Business and Government
- Regulatory Reform