As a result, CEI experts have encouraged and supported trade-enhancing policies and treaties over the years, including “fast-track” Trade Promotion Authority, specific trade deals, and multilateral efforts such as the Doha round of the World Trade Organization. We have opposed increased tariffs, attempts to increase regulation through trade deal language, and the trend toward bilateral rather than multilateral deals. CEI continues to make the case for free trade in the face of increased bipartisan hostility to the idea.
CEI’s experts also work with like-minded colleagues abroad to oppose harmful initiatives, such as working with British colleagues to stop that country’s competition agency from blocking mergers between American firms based on speculative reasoning.
Featured Posts
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Biden says his steel tariffs totally different from Trump’s, speculates uncle was eaten by cannibals
President Joe Biden vowed Wednesday that he would get tough on China’s steel dumping by tripling tariffs on imports. He argued this was totally different…
Blog
Free the Economy podcast: Paying for organs with Pete Jaworski
In this week’s episode we cover the future of AI and employment, why we shouldn’t trust Chinese economic statistics, and how the…
Daily Caller
Fresh Report Explains How International Climate Treaties Benefit China At America’s Expense
CEI’s Ben Lieberman is cited in Daily Caller on the Kigali Amendment: “China’s status as a developing nation in U.N. treaties has created an unfair…
Search Posts
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Should Geoengineering be Banned?
Since one day the sun will expand into a red-giant star, humans in the distant multi-millennial future will either have to leave the Earth, geoengineer…
Blog
Morning Media Summary
Tech: Privacy Commissioner slams data retention: “The Australian Privacy Commissioner Timothy Pilgrim has slammed the Federal Government’s proposed data retention law and called…
Blog
Rare Earths — Not So Rare?
What do yttrium, ytterbium, erbium and terbium have in common? They are rare earth elements first found in the Swedish town of Ytterby between 1828…
Blog
Increase in American Corruption May Have Been Understated
Earlier, I wrote about how America had slipped to a historic low on the Global Corruption Index, becoming more corrupt. In retrospect, I think…
Blog
Morning Media Summary
Tech: Free E-Books, With a Catch – Advertising: “Barnes & Noble may kick off a fresh price war today…
Blog
Global Food Crisis Forecast; Aggravated by Biofuels and Global Warming Legislation
A global food crisis is “forecast as prices reach record highs.” “Rising food prices and shortages could cause instability in many countries as the…
Blog
Hugo Chavez Steals More Productive Sectors of the Venezuelan Economy
CBS is reporting today that Hugo Chavez “ordered the expropriation of U.S.-based glass maker Owens-Illinois Inc.’s unit in the South American country.” This is…
Blog
Stalled Korea FTA May Get a Boost
U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk is scheduled to meet today with Korean Trade Minister Kim Jong-hoon in San Francisco to discuss the pending U.S.-Korea…
Blog
The Nobel Case for Immigration
In today's American Spectator, my colleague Alex Nowrasteh and I make the case for expanding skilled immigration.
Blog
Mysteries of the Liberal Mind: Inmate Voting Good, Soldiers Voting Bad
Liberal judges insist that it’s racist to keep prison inmates from voting, because inmates are disproportionately members of minority groups. See the dissents of liberal…
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Morning Media Summary
Tech: Bees’ tiny brains beat computers, study finds: “Bees can solve complex mathematical problems which keep computers busy for days, research has…
Blog
Bureaucrats Disenfranchise Overseas Troops
Illinois officials missed the deadline to mail ballots to U.S. troops overseas, but they hand-delivered ballots to inmates, without even waiting for inmates…
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Morning Media Summary
Tech: Google in new partnership with the Post: “We live in an evolving market and is going from being a letter to the…
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Morning Media Summary
Tech: Canada Says Google Wi-Fi Sniffing Collected Personal Data: “Canada’s privacy commissioner said Tuesday that Google’s recent Wi-Fi sniffing was a serious violation…
Blog
Exploiting the Poor: International Trade
On last week’s Stossel (no video available yet), was mentioned that rich countries gain their wealth through the exploitation of poor countries. Professor Marc Hill of Columbia University…
Blog
Morning Media Summar
Tech: Privacy vs. Profits: “The threat to privacy posed by digital technology is about to take a turn for the worse. At least,…
Blog
China Might Halt Rare Earth Exports
The New York Times reports: “China Said to Halt Some Mineral Shipments.” HONG KONG — China, which has been blocking shipments of crucial minerals…
Blog
Obama’s Nativist Scare Tactics May Backfire on Him
President Obama has made the baseless claim that the Chamber of Commerce is spending foreign money on political campaigns. This claim was widely disseminated…
Blog
The East German Immigration Model
A U.S. Senate candidate in Alaska thinks that the U.S. should follow East Germany's example when it comes to immigration.
Blog
Morning Media Summary
Tech: The World is Full of Interesting Things: “That’s the name of a brilliant slideshow created by Google’s Creative Labs. You’ll find a…
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Democrats Took the Most Foreign Money
It turns out that Democrats have taken twice as much foreign money in this election cycle as Republicans. They’ve taken “more than $1 million…
Blog
China Mocks U.S. Over Subsidy Investigation
An update to Friday’s post: Bloomberg (and the The New York Times) reported this weekend on China’s response to U.S. accusations…
Blog
Morning Media Summary
Tech: Facebook in Privacy Breach: “Many of the most popular applications, or “apps,” on the social-networking site Facebook Inc. have been transmitting…
Blog
A Potentially Bold Fiscal Policy Experiment in U.K.
The Wall Street Journal reports that the Conservative government of Prime Minister David Cameron plans to cut 192 independent government agencies in an…
Blog
“Illegal” Green Energy Subsidies
In a move that surprised no one, The New York Times reported today that the U.S. agreed to go ahead and formally investigate…
Blog
Morning Media Summary
Tech: Putting the squeeze on the broadband copper robbers: “When we think of tech crime, we tend to imagine hackers cooking up exploits…
Blog
Why Trade and War Are Different
Over at the American Spectator's AmspecBlog, I highlight why real wars and trade wars are very, very different…
Blog
Morning Media Summary
The following is a roundup of the morning’s media. We hope you will make a daily stop at Open Market to read the latest updates.
Blog
Betancourt: Revolutions Not So Nice
After six years in FARC captivity deep in Colombia’s jungle, Ingrid Betancourt is over revolution and ready for cake. From the NPR story…
Blog
Stimulus Money Went to Prisoners and Dead People
17,000 prison inmates received checks courtesy of the $800 billion stimulus package, notes the Associated Press. $18 million in checks went to dead…
Blog
CEI Weekly: United Auto Workers Shut Down GM Plant
CEI Weekly is a compilation of articles and blogs from CEI staff. This week features Vincent Vernuccio's October 1st interview on Fox Business' Varney &…
Blog
CEI Podcast – October 7, 2010: Trade, Jobs, and Korea
CEI Adjunct Fellow Fran Smith talks about the EU-Korea free trade agreement that takes effect next year, and why the US-Korea FTA stalled, to the…
Blog
Skilled Immigrants: More, Please
For every H-1B position requested, U.S. technology firms increase their employment by five workers. The government's artificial limit on skilled immigration is prolonging the recession.
Blog
EU-Korea Trade Pact Will Hurt U.S. Without its Own FTA
As the European Union signs a trade pact with South Korea, U.S. manufacturers are calling on policymakers to approve the U.S.-Korea Free Trade…
Blog
Job Losses and Productivity Gains
I came across this chart tracking U.S. manufacturing jobs and U.S. productivity over the past 38 years (posted yesterday by Mark Perry). It’s worth…
Citation
No Chickening Out on Trade Retaliation
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Take a Look at U.S. Tariffs – They Raise Costs and Restrict Choice
With so much focus on “unfair” trade vis-à-vis U.S. trade partners, especially China, it’s sometimes sobering to look at protectionist U.S. policies that restrict…
Blog
New EPA Rules Will Cost More than 800,000 Jobs
New EPA rules will cost more than 800,000 jobs, probably far more, according to a newly released congressional report. That includes the EPA’s…
Blog
No Chickening Out on Trade Retaliation
Trade relations between the U.S. and China are heating up, with both countries bringing antidumping charges against the other — some in retaliation for earlier…
Blog
Canada’s Green Energy and Jobs Programs Butt Up Against WTO Rules, says Japan
Do green energy and green jobs mandates run counter to World Trade Organization rules? Japan says “yes” in relation to Canada’s program for renewable…
Blog
CEI in Europe: Travelblog 6–Berlin, Germany
One of the teachers at the recently-completed Language of Liberty camps was fond of telling students a certain joke: “Do you know what the…
Blog
CEI in Europe: Travelblog 5–Sulejow, Poland
When we left Portugal for the Language of Liberty camp in Poland, we left a wine country for a vodka country. At the supermarket near…
Blog
Tricks Against Trade
Public Citizen’s Global Trade Watch is up to its tricks against trade again. Noted for its past expertise in destroying the Seattle WTO negotiations, the…
Newsletter
Creating High-Tech Jobs, John McCain and the Greens, Free Market Scholarships
Ryan Young and Ryan Radia discuss how to create high-tech jobs. Myron Ebell is skeptical that John McCain will return to supporting the environmentalist agenda.
Blog
CEI in Europe: Travelblog 4–Sulejow, Poland
On our way to the Language of Liberty campsite in Sulejow, Poland, we were told that religion is the greatest antidote to government power. Our…
Blog
CEI in Europe: Travelblog 3–Porto, Portugal
Some things at the Porto Language of Liberty camp are lost in translation. One problem is political labels. They call us “liberals,” meaning classical liberals.
Blog
America Declines in Property Rights, Rule of Law
The World Economic Forum says that property rights are deteriorating in the United States, to the point where America ranks behind third-world countries…
Blog
CEI Podcast: Alex Nowrasteh on Birthright Citizenship
In the latest CEI Podcast, Alex Nowrasteh discusses birthright citizenship.
Blog
CEI in Europe: Travelblog 2–Porto, Portugal
The Portuguese Constitution guarantees the provision of many social services, including free health care. The students at the Porto Language of Liberty camp remind us…
Blog
Obama Proposes $50 Billion More in Wasteful Deficit Spending
President Obama has proposed $50 billion more in deficit spending after his original $800 billion stimulus package…
Blog
CEI in Europe: Travelblog 1–Porto, Portugal
On the plane to Lisbon—on our way to our first Language of Liberty camp—I watched the first half of the unwatchable Prince of Persia. Alfred…
Blog
Unemployment Jumps to 9.6%, 54,000 More Jobs Lost
Unemployment went back up to 9.6%, as the nation shed 54,000 jobs in August. Yet Obama calls this “Recovery Summer.” This is…
Blog
Record Federal Spending Increase Due to Wasteful Spending Like the Failed Stimulus Package
Federal domestic spending increased by a record 16 percent this year, thanks to wasteful spending by the Obama administration, such as its “huge economic…
Newsletter
CEI Weekly: Post-Spill Moratorium Worse than the Spill
CEI Weekly is a compilation of articles and blog posts from CEI’s fellows and associates sent out via e-mail every Friday. Also included in…
Blog
CEI Weekly: Post-Spill Moratorium Worse than the Spill
CEI Weekly is a compilation of articles and blogs from CEI's staff. This week features Ben Lieberman's op-ed, criticizing the deleterious effects of the oil-spill…
Blog
More Mercantilist Claptrap
No wonder people are confused about the trade issue when they read mercantilist articles like the front-pager by Howard Schneider in the Washington Post…
Blog
Sugar in the News Again
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s September 2010 issue of its magazine, “Amber Waves,” has an excellent article on the U.S. domestic sugar program –…
Blog
CEI Weekly: The Union Pension Bailout
CEI Weekly is a compilation of articles and blogs from CEI's staff. This week features Vincent Vernuccio's appearance on Fox Business to discuss the multi-billion-dollar…
Blog
A Full-Court Press on Trade? Not Likely
Today’s Washington Times has a lengthy article on the Obama Administration’s trade agenda vis-à-vis the stalled free trade agreements with South Korea, Colombia, and…
Blog
Regulation of the Day 148: Cutting Grass in Cemeteries
In the world of regulation, no good deed goes unpunished.
Blog
Political Pessimism, Human Optimism
If you're despairing over the state of the world, the data are a wonderful cure for pessimism.
Blog
Mexico’s Retaliation — A Good Idea?
Cato’s Dan Ikenson posted today in favor of the trade retaliation measures announced by Mexico in response to the U.S. refusal to open its…
Blog
Government Spends Billions Bailing Out Foreign Firms and Countries, and Replacing American Jobs With Foreign Green Jobs
Our government spent as much money bailing out foreign firms as some countries spent on stabilizing their entire financial system. Much of the money…
Blog
Government-Sanctioned Lying and Reparations Increase National Debt: The Pigford Class Action
There are only 36,697 black farmers in the entire country, but in a class-action lawsuit, more than 86,000 African-Americans claimed to have suffered…
Blog
Oh, the Horror! Budget Cuts Mean Pampered Artists Get Less Government Money to Insult Taxpayers
Thanks to budget cuts under England’s new Conservative coalition government, “London may no longer be ‘a beacon for controversial pieces’ such as last year’s…
Blog
Obama Justice Department Uses Americans with Disabilities Act to Harm the Disabled, Risk Lives, and Undermine Safety
“Amazon.com . . . tried to sell a talking Kindle reader, but” the Justice Department “said it couldn’t because the button to make the…
Blog
131,000 Jobs Lost in July; Obama Aide Abandons Ship; Economists Criticize Obama; More Bailouts
“Non-farm job losses hit 131,000 in July,” on top of a loss of 97,000 jobs in May and June. Another Obama economic advisor is…
Blog
Manuel “Muso” Ayau RIP
Manuel Ayau, known by his many friends and admirers as “Muso,” passed away early this morning, in his native Guatemala — a country he loved and…
Blog
Missouri Voters Overwhelmingly Reject ObamaCare’s Individual Mandate in Referendum
“Missouri voters on Tuesday overwhelmingly rejected a federal mandate to purchase health insurance, rebuking President Barack Obama’s administration and giving Republicans their first political…
Blog
854,000 People Have Top-Secret Security Clearances; Huge, Politically-Correct Security Apparatus Expands
The Washington Post reports that 854,000 people have top-secret security clearances. America’s security apparatus is huge and incredibly costly. Despite all these resources,…
Blog
Senate Passes Financial “Reform” That Leaves Corrupt Bailout Recipients Unreformed, While Harming the Public
Yesterday, the Senate passed a so-called financial reform bill by a vote of 60-to-38, making it all but certain to become law. The bill…
Blog
CEI Weekly: The Lady Gaga Economy
CEI weekly is a compilation of articles and blogs from CEI's staff. This week features Wayne Crews' op-ed in The Daily Caller entitled "The Lady…
Blog
EPA, Not Jones Act, Blocked Dutch Skimmers
It was apparently the EPA, not the Jones Act, that blocked Dutch skimmers from cleaning up the oil spill in Louisiana in late April:…
Blog
CEI Weekly: LibertyWeek Turns 100
CEI weekly is a compilation of articles and blogs from CEI's staff. This week features the 100th episode of CEI's podcast, LibertyWeek. CEI Founder Fred…
Blog
Readers Contest Factcheck.Org’s “Oil Spill, Foreign Help, and the Jones Act”
FactCheck.org argued that the Jones Act, which ordinarily bans both foreign ships and foreign crews from working in U.S. waters, did not interfere with foreign…
Newsletter
Federal Spending, Free Trade and the Regulation Round-up
The House of Representatives passes a non-binding resolution to limit government spending. The Obama White House belatedly discovers the virtues of free trade. For those…
Blog
What’s ahead for free trade?
In her column today, Kimberley Strassel throws some light on what’s behind President Obama’s recent endorsement of the U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement and…
CEI Planet
CEI Planet: May – June 2010
To view this issue of the CEI Planet, please click here to download the PDF file. Below are selected articles from the May-June 2010 issue: Collective…
Blog
California poker players: 1 – Free market opponents: 0
As I wrote yesterday, California was on the verge of passing a bill that would have allowed residents to play poker online at one…
Blog
For Whom the Dell Tolls
Less than fifteen years ago, Dell computers were the hot desktop brand. In a rapidly growing market, Dell developed a unique business model which…
Blog
Supreme Court Dooms Chicago Gun Ban; Obama Judicial Nominees Oppose Gun Rights; Religious Clubs Lose First Amendment Case; Removal of High-Ranking Bureaucrats Made Easier
The Supreme Court doomed Chicago’s handgun ban Monday by ruling 5-to-4 that the Second Amendment applies to state and local governments…
Newsletter
A Supreme Court Win, a New Push for Free Trade and the Pentagon’s Biofuels Boondoggle
CEI scores a Supreme Court victory in the case of Free Enterprise Fund v. Public Company Accounting Oversight Board. President Obama is getting ready to…
Blog
President Obama to push U.S.-Korea FTA
Economic reality is beginning to take the place of anti-trade rhetoric on the U.S.-South Korea Free Trade Agreement, which has been on hold since it…
Newsletter
Official Bedtimes, Stimulus Creep and Free Trade Agreements
Japan’s Environment Ministry is encouraging its citizens to go to bed an hour earlier at night, and get up an hour earlier in the morning.
Blog
Regulation of the Day 143: Your Bedtime
In Japan, your bedtime is official government business.
Blog
New Federal Interference With Oil-Spill Clean-Up: Feds Stop Louisiana From Dredging Needed to Create Protective Sand Berms
A TV station in New Orleans reports that “the federal government is shutting down the dredging that was being done to create protective sand…
Blog
Stimulus Package to Cost $75 Billion More Than Predicted; Plus, Government-Employee Bailout Sought
The stimulus package is going to cost at least $75 billion more than the $787 billion the Obama administration claimed, according to the Congressional…
Blog
Canada sees a good deal in Colombia FTA
Canada ratified a free trade agreement with Colombia on June 21, showing that the U.S.’s northern neighbor knows a good deal when it sees…
Blog
Judge Blocks Gulf Drilling Ban, Citing Deception by Obama Administration; Obama Continues to Delay Gulf Clean-Up
A federal judge has just blocked the Obama administration from imposing a blanket ban on drilling in the Gulf of Mexico.
Blog
Supreme Court Upholds Controversial Antiterror Law; More Clues About Elena Kagan
Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan was instrumental in getting President Clinton to veto a ban on partial-birth abortion. She also lumped…
Op-Eds
Obama Uses Oil Spill to Push Failed Energy Policies
In his speech, President Obama used the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico to push his failed energy policies, such as…
Blog
Obama Administration Blocks Clean-Up of Oil Spill by Louisiana and Foreign Allies By Imposing Red Tape
The Obama Administration recently used red tape to force Louisiana to stop using 16 barges that were cleaning up the Gulf…
Op-Eds
Obama’s Actions Prevent Timely Clean-Up By U.S. Allies
Crucial offers to help clean up BP’s oil spill “have come from Belgian, Dutch, and Norwegian firms that … possess some of the world’s most…
Op-Eds
Obama Blocks Louisiana, Foreign Allies from Oil Spill Clean-Up
The Obama Administration recently used red tape to force Louisiana to stop using 16 barges that were cleaning up the Gulf of Mexico…
Blog
Obama Uses Oil Spill to Push Failed Energy Policies
In his speech last night, President Obama used the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico to push his failed energy policies, such…
Newsletter
EPA Disapproval, Oil Spill Politics and Ethanol Technology
Last week, the Senate rejected Lisa Murkowski’s resolution of disapproval against the EPA. President Obama has refused offers from several European countries to help clean…
Blog
Obama Blocked Clean Up of BP Oil Spill by Friendly Countries; International Assistance Blocked by Regulations Obama Had The Authority To Waive
Crucial offers to help clean up BP’s oil spill “have come from Belgian, Dutch, and Norwegian firms that . . . possess some of the…
Blog
Obama Wants Taxpayers to Cough Up $50 Billion To Bail Out Public-Employee Unions
President Obama now wants Congress to spend $50 billion to keep state governments from laying off government employees. In essence, this is a bailout…
Op-Eds
Obama Refuses to Waive Law to Allow Foreign Help With Oil Spill
Crucial offers to help clean up BP’s oil spill “have come from Belgian, Dutch, and Norwegian firms that . . . possess some of…
Blog
CEI Weekly: Senate Defends EPA Power Grab
CEI weekly is a compilation of articles and blogs from CEI's staff. This week features the vote in the Senate on the Murkowski resolution that…