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
Blog
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…
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Newsletter
CEI Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. ENVIRONMENT International aid agencies continue to criticize the expanded use of biofuels as harmful to the environment and the…
Op-Eds
Federal Ethanol Mandates Will Plow Us All Under
Holman W. Jenkins Jr.'s column “Cheap Shot at Toyota,” (editorial page, Oct. 24) rightly points out the significant negative consequences of the ethanol “cornrush”…
Op-Eds
Why America Doesn’t Ratify Treaties
One of the leading sources of anti-Americanism relates to America's supposed arrogance in failing to sign or ratify international treaties that the rest of…
Newsletter
CEI Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. ECONOMICS Taxpayers advocates highlight the amount of public money doled out to the owners of professional sports franchises. …
News Release
U.S.-South Korea Free Trade Agreement Necessary
Contact: Jody Clarke, 202.331.2252 Washington, D.C., October 15, 2007—As Congress considers bilateral trade agreements with several countries, a new study from the…
Newsletter
CEI Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. TRADE Prominent Democrats come out in favor of pending free trade agreements with Colombia, Panama…
Study
The Law of the Sea Treaty
The genesis of the Law of the Sea Treaty (LOST), widely known as the “constitution of the oceans,” runs back more than 60 years. The…
Newsletter
CEI Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. INTERNATIONAL Microsoft suffers a legal setback in Europe where it has been accused of anti-competitive practices.
Study
A Village’s Travail
Full Document Available in PDF Rosia Montana, a poor mining town in the Transylvanian…
Newsletter
CEI Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. ENERGY & AGRICULTURE The “UN warns of unrest as food price inflation hits developing countries,” pointing the finger…
Newsletter
CEI Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. TELECOM Some colleges are ditching expensive landline phones in dorms, since students all have cell phones, anyway. (…
Newsletter
CEI Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. POLITICS The DC Examiner editorializes on the aggressive tactics labor unions are using to recruit public…
Op-Eds
Congress’ Energy Legislation Would Impair Alabama
Major industrial firms like <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = “urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags” />Toyota and Boeing continue to pour investment into Alabama, which now boasts…
Blog
Heritage to Congress: Ratify FTA with Colombia
Over at The Heritage Foundation, James M. Roberts, in a paper titled “The U.S.—Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement: Don’t Let Progress Fall Victim to D.C.
Blog
“Political pandering” on trade
The Denver Post yesterday ran an excellent editorial about the negative climate for free trade, with a focus on “election-year political pandering.” Here are…
Blog
Fund on Mine Your Own Business
Today in OpinionJournal.com, John Fund looks at the environmentalist-led campaign against a proposed mine in Rosia Montana, Romania, documented in the film Mine…
Blog
Peru’s Post-Earthquake Prospects
The horrendous devastation of the recent earthquake in Peru could only have been exacerbated by government incompetence. That's my conclusion after reading Ian Vazquez's…
Blog
In Brazil, a Moment of Silence against State Incompetence and Corruption
Tomorrow, Friday August 17, at 1:00 pm (local time), our friends at Brazil’s Instituto Liberdade will participate in the campaign “Worn Out,” (Cansei)…
Blog
Foreign Aid Kills
Foreign food aid often causes, rather than alleviates, hunger, by destroying the basis of the farm economy in the country that receives the aid, as…
Blog
Nicaragua Objects to U.S. Cigar Tax Increase
Nicaragua’s legislature has objected to proposed increases in U.S. cigar taxes, which would raise the tax on some premium cigars from 5 cents…
Blog
UN Group Rejects Precautionary Principle
The Codex Alimentarius Commission, a joint UN Food and Agricultural Organization-World Health Organization food safety standard-setting body, has apparently agreed to exclude the…
Newsletter
CEI Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. LEGAL The Federalist Society hosts a forum on state attorney general activism. …
Study
Ethanol is a Budget Buster
Full Document Available in PDF News story after news story highlights the impact of ethanol…
Op-Eds
Pork Farm
Congress is beginning debate on the new farm bill, which is, as usual, larded with subsidies and pork. So now is a good time…
Newsletter
CEI Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. CONGRESS Lawmakers prepare to vote on a major new farm bill. CEI Expert Available to…
Blog
“Fisher Price mining tools”
Pundits discuss the merits of preserving traditional cultures….well, not really — from the Onion News Network, strategies for making poor Africans feel good about…
Op-Eds
Free trade agreements win-win for U.S.
Support for free trade long has transcended party politics in <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = “urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags” />America. But that era officially ended with…
Newsletter
CEI Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. CONGRESS Lawmakers prepare to vote on a major new farm bill. CEI Expert Available to…
Op-Eds
The Biofuel Fad
William Saletan argued in favor of biofuels on humanitarian and environmental grounds [“A Corny Cold War,” Outlook, July 8]. He was wrong on both…
Op-Eds
Kyoto Anniversary: What it Means Today
Ten years ago today the U.S. Senate did something that at the time seemed significant and now seems remarkably foresightful. By a vote of…
News Release
Global Warming Resolution Marks 10th Anniversary
Washington, D.C., July 25, 2007—Today marks the 10th anniversary of an important and prescient vote in the U.S. Senate. As global warming treaty negotiations in…
Blog
One Out of Two Ain’t Bad
I’m pleased to report that Al Gore is innocent of charges of hypocrisy related to serving Chilean Sea Bass at his daughter’s wedding celebrations. The…
Newsletter
CEI Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. LEGAL The city of Washington, D.C. asks the Supreme Court to review a recent federal court verdict…
News Release
Public Interest Groups Oppose Sugar Subsidies
Washington, D.C., July 17, 2007—As members of the House Agriculture Committee consider the 2007 farm bill, several public interest groups are urging committee members to…
Letters
Letter to Members of the House Agriculture Committee Regarding the 2007 Farm Bill
To: Members of the House Agriculture Committee We, as representatives of consumer, taxpayer, public policy, and humanitarian groups, are writing to express…
Newsletter
CEI Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. ENVIRONMENT Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. makes waves by calling global warming skeptics “traitors.” CEI Expert Available…
News Release
Congress Poised to Prop Up Sugar Regime
Washington, D.C., July 16, 2007—Americans have been paying for sugar at two to three times the world price over the past 25 years, thanks…
Blog
Price signals don’t lie
And today in Nigeria they bring some needed, and rare, good news in an otherwise dismal situation: The price of machetes has halved…
Newsletter
CEI Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. Trade Four international trade agreements await action in Congress. CEI Expert…
Blog
AEI Panel Discussion about the bipartisan trade deal – Continued
Kimberly Ann Elliot, senior fellow with the Peter G. Peterson Institute for International Economics, contended that labor and environmental standards do have role to play,…
Blog
AEI panel discussion about FTAs in the aftermath of the bipartisan deal
In the aftermath of the bipartisan deal between the Democrats and the Bush Administration, the question is whether the new enforceable environmental and ILO labor…
Blog
Progressives engage in globalization debate
The Democratic Leadership Council — home to progressive Democrats — last week announced a new Global Economy Project, whose mission is — . .
Blog
Sarkocialism
The ONLY good thing about the EU in my opinion has been its commitment to a single market and attacks on state aid. The harmonization…
Newsletter
CEI Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. Congress The Senate passes an energy bill, including efficiency, alternative fuel and anti-price gouging sections.
Newsletter
CEI Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. Congress Energy legislation appears to be stalling out in the Senate. CEI Expert Available…
Letters
A Joint Letter to the U. S. Senate on S. 1419, the Making Energy Less Affordable Act
Washington, D. C. 14th June 2007 Dear Senator: The undersigned organizations are writing to share our concerns about S. 1419,…
Op-Eds
Food Before Fuel
Feel like you’re getting squeezed by prices at the gas pump? Get ready to experience that same feeling at the grocery store. As ABC News…
Study
Corn-Based Ethanol
A boom in ethanol production is taking place today for variety of reasons. Undoubtedly, the most significant factor is government support and subsidies for biofuel…
Op-Eds
Letter to the Editor: EU talk no match for US action on emissions
Sir, Your editorial “A big step forward on climate change” (June 9) uncharacteristically falls into the typical chattering class mistake…
Op-Eds
The Church of Rachel Carson
One hundred years after her birth in May of 1907, it’s difficult to underestimate Rachel Carson’s influence. Unfortunately, it’s all bad. That hasn’t stopped…
Study
Why Price Gouging Doesn’t Exist
Full Document Available in PDF One Sunday in 2005, soon after…
Newsletter
CEI Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. Environment Rolling Stone magazine switches to “carbon neutral” paper, but still receives attacks from…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Tuesday, June 5, 2007 Issues in the News 1. MEDIAA federal appeals court strikes down Federal Communications Commission’s rules for…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. TRADE Congress votes to attach labor provisions to new trade agreements. CEI Expert…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = “urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office” /> Issues in the News 1. LEGAL…
News Release
DC Rally to “Free Kareem” and Support Free Speech and Human Rights
<?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = “urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags” />Washington, D.C., April 27, 2007—The Bureaucrash Activist Network and allies are urging Egyptian officials to…
News Release
Poor Countries Need Open Access to Rich Countries’ Markets, Say Nonprofits
Contact: Richard Morrison, 202-331-2273 Washington, D.C., April 16, 2007—The poorest countries of the world should have duty-free, quota-free access to rich countries’ markets, stated…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
1. ENVIRONMENT Al Gore is forced to move his global warming-themed “Live Earth” concert from Washington, D.C. to New Jersey.
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. REGULATION Maryland lawmakers approve a statewide ban on smoking in bars and restaurants.
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
1. ENVIRONMENT The United Nations prepares to officially release its latest report on the predicted effects of global warming. CEI Experts Available to Comment: Senior…
Study
A Free Market Agenda for the 110th Congress
Washington, D.C., January 10, 2007—Today the Competitive Enterprise Institute releases its policy recommendations for the new leadership on Capitol Hill: This Liberal Congress Went to…
Study
This Liberal Congress Went to Market: a Bipartisan Policy Agenda for the 110th Congress
DO…
News Release
A Free Market Agenda for the 110th Congress
Contact: Richard Morrison, 202.331.2273 Washington, D.C., January 10, 2007—Today the Competitive Enterprise Institute releases its policy recommendations for the new leadership…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. SCIENCE Researchers suggest a link between climate change and increased rates of malaria infection…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. INTERNATIONAL The European Union approves a new law, known as “REACH,” regulating the manufacture…
Op-Eds
Unleash the media
With a stop-off in Nashville on Dec. 11, the Federal Communications Commission continues a series of hearings debating government's role in determining the…
News Release
Are Republicans and Democrats Really That Different?
Contact: Richard Morrison, 202.331.2273…
Op-Eds
The Man for All Seasons
Life really can imitate art. Leon Hesser's straightforward yet gripping biography of Norman Borlaug, the plant breeder known as the Father of the…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. SAFETY President Bush hosts a swearing-in ceremony for incoming Secretary of Transportation Mary E.
Op-Eds
Big business loses a buddy with Mark Foley resignation
WASHINGTON – We’re still figuring out who knew what and when about former Florida Rep. Mark Foley’s behavior toward pages, but the disgraced…
Op-Eds
A Nobel Prize For Pinpointing U.S. Greatness
America is now five for five in the Nobel Prizes this year. And the announcement of Edmund Phelps as the economics recipient is…
Op-Eds
Back to Business School
It’s the beginning of the fall semester and MBA programs across the world are preparing students to become good business leaders.
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. ENVIRONMENT A new study suggests a connection between global warming and stronger hurricanes.
Products
The Responsible Corporation
Does anybody believe that companies should be socially irresponsible? I don’t think so. The problem is that few people can seem to agree on…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = “urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office” /> Issues in the News 1. LEGAL A recent federal court verdict on…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = “urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office” /> Issues in the News 1. ENERGY California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. SCIENCE The Environmental Protection Agency proposes tightening air quality standards. CEI…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. ENERGY High summer demand for electricity in California could force rolling blackouts throughout the…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News TRANSPORTATION A documentary about the development of the electric car hits movie theaters. CEI Expert…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. TECHNOLOGY The Senate takes up telecommunications reform, including a look at the…
Letters
Letter to the FCC regarding “must carry” laws for cable operators
Full Document Available in PDF The undersigned organizations would…
Op-Eds
Get Rid of the High Places
In one of the least surprising developments of 2006, a Louisiana politician has been snared in a corruption scandal. Democratic Congressman William Jefferson has…
Op-Eds
Data Mismanagement
Members of Congress, both Republican and Democrat, now say that Sarbanes-Oxley can be unduly burdensome on business. The law that, in…
Op-Eds
The Responsible Corporation
Does anybody believe that companies should be socially irresponsible? I don’t think so. The problem is that few people seem to agree on…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. ENVIRONMENT Global warming alarmism debuts on the big screen courtesy of former Vice President…
News Release
CEI and Sugar Reform Alliance Urge Congress to Begin Reforming U.S. Sugar Regime
<?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = “urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags” />Washington, D.C., May 16, 2006— Consumer, taxpayer, humanitarian and public policy groups sent a letter today,…
Study
Global Warming FAQ: What Every Citizen Needs to Know About Global Warming
Overview. Alarm over the prospect of the Earth warming is not warranted by the agreed science or economics of the issue. Global warming is happening…
Op-Eds
Volatile Gases
The European emissions trading scheme (ETS) was launched with great fanfare last year. The idea was to require certain energy-intensive industries to have a…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. ENERGY Hawaii abandons its price caps on gasoline. CEI Expert Available to Comment:…
Products
New Era, or ‘Ancien Régime,’ for European Biotech?
The long-awaited World Trade Organization (WTO) decision on biotech food is due to be released this spring, but a leaked copy of the…
Products
Time to End Big Sugar’s Sweet Deal
Sugar is already shaping up to be a contentious issue in upcoming debates on the 2007 omnibus farm bill. The call for dismantling…
Products
Animal Rights, Human Wrongs
Animal rights extremists—whom the FBI has labeled America’s biggest domestic terrorism threat—have encountered a number of serious reverses recently. These reverses are a great victory…
Products
CEI Planet: March – April 2006
Full Document Available in PDF New Era, or ‘Ancien Régime,’…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. CONGRESS The Senate Finance Committee investigates tax documents from major oil companies. CEI Expert Available to…
Study
Stay Cool; Stay Very Cool: A Commentary on Time’s “Special Report” on Global Warming
The cover of Time magazine’s April 3, 2006 issue tells readers to “be very worried” about climate change. The issue features a “special report” on…
Op-Eds
Is the U.S. Sugar Problem Solvable?
The United States’ sugar policy has a long history of supporting sugar producers, and the current system has its roots in the agricultural programs of…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. LEGAL Payments from tobacco companies to states are found to have been diverted away…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
1. BUSINESS Wal-Mart announces a new initiative to revitalize struggling urban neighborhoods. CEI Expert Available to Comment: Adjunct Analyst…
Op-Eds
Careful What You Wish For
If you wanted to lower electric energy prices in the US, what would you do? If you answered, “Cripple the domestic railroad industry,” you'd…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. CONGRESS The Senate passes a budget resolution which includes provisions allowing oil and gas exploration in…
