Forbes
Here’s How Financial And Other Regulators Are Issuing Rules Without Writing Them
At the end of June I testified in a U.S. Senate Homeland Security Regulatory oversight subcommittee hearing on Examining the Use of Agency Regulatory…
Foundation for Economic Education
Fear Not Malevolent AI Robots
I’ve recently become hooked on Michael Solona’s new podcast series, “Anatomy of Next: Utopia,”a fascinating analysis of our most advanced and rapidly developing technologies…
Forbes
Manage Water Like Oil To Increase Supply
Some of the natural resources we use every day are traded freely in the market economy, while others are heavily regulated and controlled by government…
The New York Times
Costs of Regulations
To the Editor: You criticize our study of federal agencies, “Ten Thousand Commandments,” for analyzing the costs of regulations without adjusting for their alleged benefits…
USA Today
Soda taxes slim wallets, not waistlines
Since Philadelphia’s city council approved a 1.5 cent per ounce tax on soda this month, “public health” advocates, led by former New York City…
Op-Eds
Britain was always a bad fit for the EU: Think tank
Fox News
Persecuting climate skeptics: The cover-up continues
Seventeen attorneys general got more than they bargained for when they held a March 29, 2016 “publicity stunt” press conference to announce, with former…
Foundation for Economic Education
The Prisoners’ Dilemma of Britain and the EU
The world economy roiled following Britain’s vote to leave the European Union. Uncertainty was the cause. Even the scope of the potential deal is unknown…
Inside Sources
Brexit Vote Is the End of the Beginning
In the end, it wasn’t close. People had been expecting a clear win for the Remain side in the popular vote on whether Britain should…
Maryland Reporter
Opinion: County contracts with union paid leave cost taxpayers
Prince George’s County Council is considering approval of a union contract covering firefighters and paramedics. But legal developments around the country should give council members…
Forbes
If ‘Fiduciary Rule’ Goes Through, the Joke Is On American Savers
John Oliver’s viewers may think of themselves as the smart set, but the popular TV comic recently suggested that he rather deems them dim bulbs…
National Review
Britain’s Time for Choosing
I’ve steered clear of opining here about tomorrow’s Brexit vote as so many others have been doing such a good job of it, like…
American Legislative Exchange Council
Union Time on the Taxpayer Dime
Connecticut state budgets are in dire straits. Belts need to be tightened. Revenue projections estimate the budget deficit could spill over $900 million in…
Investor's Business Daily
Congress Missed Chance To Roll Back Job-Killing Regulations
A dismal May jobs report — where only 38,000 jobs were added to economy when 162,000 were expected — was the lowest mark since…
Forbes
Improve Access to Capital & Access to Wealth Creation With More Crowdfunding Deregulation
In this hyper-partisan era, the one thing Republicans and Democrats seem to agree on is the need to enable entrepreneurs and small businesses to gain…
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…
Real Clear Policy
House Moves to Take Back Ozone Policymaking
Last Wednesday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a long overdue bill to take back air quality policymaking from the most powerful and unaccountable government…
The Salt Lake Tribune
EPA’s expensive haze solution won’t produce detectable difference
Seven hundred million dollars. That's how much of your money that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is willing to throw away for nothing. This is…
Real Clear Policy
Congress, Reject Labor Department’s Overtime Rule
The Obama administration publicly touts the Department of Labor’s new overtime rule as a boon for workers. But the rule, which dramatically raises the salary…
Real Clear Policy
Congress, Reject Labor Department’s Overtime Rule
The Obama administration publicly touts the Department of Labor’s new overtime rule as a boon for workers. But the rule, which dramatically raises the salary…
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…
The Washington Post
Obama administration is not as transparent as it claims
In trying to explain how the State Department snipped out several embarrassing minutes from a 2013 press briefing video, an agency spokesman claimed that “there…
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…
Cato Unbound
The Administrative State Lacks Its Own Justification: Expertise
Legitimacy notwithstanding, we tend to discuss the administrative state as if it is a functioning expert entity, taking expertise in its divisions for granted. But…
Forbes
Bureaucracy’s Paradox: When Fewer Regulations Mean Less Freedom
"To limit abuse by the rulers, ancient Rome wrote down the law and permitted citizens to read it. Under Dodd-Frank, regulatory authority is…
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.
Inside Sources
Can Alternative Energy Replace Fossil Fuels?
Portugal recently obtained four days’ worth of electricity from hydropower dams, wind turbines, cultivated biomass, and other renewable sources. That’s after the small Iberian…
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…
Cato Unbound
No Law Passed, Not Even A Regulation Promulgated—But Servitude Nonetheless
In my last post I suggested that I may point out a few prominent examples of agencies regulating with “guidance” alone rather than the notice-and-comment…
National Review
“Income Inequality” – Missing the Point
President Obama, Paul Krugman tells us, has declared war on income inequality. In fact, income inequality is at the root of just about everything…
Cato Unbound
On the Administrative State’s Illegitimacy
"Who is better than overreaching bureaucrats to decide when the bureaucrats are overreaching?” That was one respondent’s characterization of the mindset that provoked the recently…
Washington Examiner
States constitutions can rein in union subsidy
On May 10, the Arizona Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a case that could provide a roadmap to eliminate a persistent form of government…
Fox News
Surprise, surprise, Obama’s new overtime rule was never intended to raise your wages
The Obama administration claims that millions of salaried workers will get a raise under the new Department of Labor overtime rule. But a wage increase…
Forbes
Obama Releases Spring 2016 Unified Agenda of Federal Regulations
In the just-released spring 2016 Unified Agenda of Federal Regulations (Agenda), a roundup published twice yearly by the White House Office of Management and…
Washington Times
Conservatives trend liberal over Facebook
Conservatives are hopping mad about Facebook allegedly manipulating its Trending Topics to discriminate against right-leaning news stories. And some want to do something about…
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…
National Review
Stopping the Bureaucrats Requires an End to Chevron Deference
National Review
Google Bans Payday Loan Ads: Who Needs Operation Choke Point?
Yesterday, Google announced in a blog post that it was changing the terms of its advertising service to ban payday-loan ads. Their reasoning was…
Real Clear Policy
Lawmakers’ Salt Fixation Harms Our Nation’s Health
America has a salt problem — and it's not high blood pressure. The Obama administration plans to set voluntary sodium targets for processed food makers…
Foundation for Economic Education
Is the British Prime Minister a Tax Dodger?
It’s the issue that consumed British politicians and newspapers at the end of April. What Britons do about it will determine whether their nation will…
Newsmax
Financial Protection Bureau Takes Aim at Consumers
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) just proposed limiting binding-arbitration clauses in credit card contracts and other forms of consumer credit. This does not come…
National Review
The CFPB Moves to Ban Arbitration Clauses — Better Lawyer Up
Add another 377 pages to the ever-burgeoning length of the Dodd-Frank Act. Today, the Consumer Financial Protection Racket Bureau announced that it would use its…
The Hill
Presidential candidates should talk about regulation
From “lyin’” to “low-energy,” the current election’s lowering of the rhetorical bar to levels that challenge even the most nimble limbo dancer is more than…
Cato Unbound
The Administrative State’s Irredeemable Devotion to Central Power
Wealth Management
Why the DOL Rule Is Bad for Small Savers
The Department of Labor’s (DOL) “fiduciary rule,” likely to first take effect in June unless blocked by Congress or the courts, will deprive small…
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…
Washington Times
New concerns about free speech – Letter to the Editor
The Justice Department’s demand that the University of New Mexico define any “unwelcome” speech about sexual matters as “sexual harassment” violates the First Amendment. (“‘Harassment’…
National Review
I’m So Fed Up, I’m Suing the TSA
Nature Biotechnology, Volume 34, Number 5
A Risk-Based Approach to the Regulation of Genetically Engineered Organisms
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…
National Review
A Chance to Stop Obamacare for Your IRA
A few weeks ago I warned about the Department of Labor’s “Fiduciary Rule” – Obamacare for your retirement accounts. Now comes a chance…
The Hill
Department of labor overtime rule is a roadblock to a bright career path
Obama labor regulators are touting a plan to boost wages, but unfortunately for people living in the real world, it’s a bill of false goods.
The Washington Post
The Environmental Campaign that Punishes Free Speech
With seven state attorneys general and Al Gore sharing a New York City stage, there was no doubt about it: It was showtime for…
Forbes
Celebrating International Mother Earth Day With A Normal Western Civilization Gas Can
It’s the weekend after International Mother Earth Day 2016, and the United States signed the Paris Climate Agreement. To President Barack Obama, the…
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.
The Hill
Crunch time: Will Congress rescue America from the Paris Agreement?
Time is running out for congressional leaders to rescue America from the Paris Agreement, the capstone of President Obama’s agenda to kill off affordable…
Detroit News
NLRB rule threatens worker right to privacy
The National Labor Relations Board, charged with conducting private-sector union elections, is now implementing an “ambush election” rule overhauling the union election process. The rule…
Fox News
Email bombshell: Attorneys General worked with Green groups to punish political opponents
Emails obtained by the Energy & Environment Legal Institute (E&E Legal) show that the offices of New York Democratic Attorney General Eric Schneiderman and those…
Forbes
Why President Barack Obama’s Executive Order On Competition Is Anti-Competitive
When you see a headline like “Obama to Sign Executive Order to Ignite Corporate Competition” you have to scratch your head at the premise,…
New York Times
Dodd-Frank Is Hurting Those Who Had Nothing to Do With the Financial Crisis
The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act has done too little to address the real causes of the financial crisis and too much…
Tribune News Service
Banning Cars from Urban Centers: Costly, Few Benefits Provided
“Take back our streets!” is a common refrain among urban activists. No, they’re not talking about reducing violent crime, as many of them reside in…
CNS News
Coercive Union Power Can Still Be Abated Despite SCOTUS Decision in Friedrichs
Public sector workers in over 20 states must continue paying union dues, like it or not, after the Supreme Court deadlocked in Friedrichs v California…
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…
CapX
Let’s stop making air transport security worse
A few weeks ago, I planned a trip to Berlin for mid-March. I initially thought to tack on a couple of extra days to conduct…
American Legislative Exchange Council
What Can be Done after Friedrichs?
Public sector workers in over 20 states must continue paying union dues, like it or not, after the Supreme Court deadlocked in Friedrichs v California…
Real Clear Policy
Minimum Wage: Is Job Loss Acceptable?
Finally, some minimum-wage advocates are acknowledging the policy's tradeoffs. New School economics professor David Howell recently asked the Washington Post, "Why shouldn't we in…
Examiner
Speech-chilling subpoena issued by Virgin Islands AG in climate investigation
Yesterday, just a few days after the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) criticized investigations of Exxon by state Attorneys General over its speech related to climate…
Library of Law and Liberty
The New Eco Tyranny
Last week, the attorneys general of 20 states met at a conference “dedicated to coming up with creative ways to enforce laws being flouted by…
Charleston Gazette-Mail
Trey Kovacs: NLRB rule threatens worker privacy
Poll after poll indicates Americans value their privacy. Yet government is a top offender in this regard, with federal agencies infringing on private citizens’ information…
Inside Sources
NLRB Rule Threatens Worker Right to Privacy
Poll after poll indicates Americans value their privacy. Yet government is a top offender in this regard, with federal agencies infringing on private citizens’ information…
Forbes
Protecting Our Semi-Privacy After The Department Of Justice Apple iPhone Hack
The Department of Justice-sponsored unlocking of the Apple iPhone used by one of the San Bernardino murderers without Apple’s help reaffirmed that an overly encryption-based…
National Review
Obamacare for Your IRA is Here
This administration can’t see a private market transaction it can keep its hands off. The latest example is a new regulation with the snooze-inducing title…
Forbes
Won’t Cut Federal Spending? Then Cap The Cost Of Regulation
Last week a group of libertarian and conservative groups issued a coalition letter calling on Congress to cap regulatory costs. While some of us…
National Review
Tentatively for Universal Basic Income
Michael Strain, as is only to be expected, does a great job outlining the pros and cons of a universal basic income (UBI) before…
Real Clear Policy
M.I.A.: GOP Leaders and the Paris Agreement
The recently adopted Paris Agreement on climate change endangers the U.S. economy, our constitutional framework, and the future of conservative politics. So why aren't…
Science 2.0
Outdated Science And Alarmism Drives Flame Retardant Debate
Learning from history should keep us from repeating our mistakes. Yet when it comes to environmental politics, the opposite seems to be true. History and…
Forbes
MetLife’s Victory Also Good for Fintech Innovators
Insurance giant MetLife won a big victory Wednesday as a district court rescinded the government’s designation of the firm as “systemically important.” Though not…
Forbes
My Celebrity Lyft Driver
Op-Eds
Schneiderman Targets Peabody Energy: Shareholder Protection or War on Coal?
Full Document Available in PDF Did New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman investigate Peabody Energy to protect shareholders against “misrepresentation” of climate-related…
Forbes
How the Fiduciary Rule Will Harm Fintech and Startups
Add startup entrepreneurs and Fintech innovators to the long list of potential victims of the Department of Labor’s pending fiduciary rule. There is already bipartisan…
Washington Times
The global warming industry’s RICO gambit
The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act is a law adopted to fight organized crime. Yet, in recent months, a chorus has emerged calling…
Daily Caller
Trade With The Cuban People, Not Castro, Inc.
Libertarians have long argued that lifting the Cuban embargo, allowing free trade to flourish with the Cuban people, would do more to bring down the…
Forbes
Antitrust Regulation Is Getting A Bit Smarter
Forbes
Antitrust Regulation Is Getting A Bit Smarter
Newsmax
Obama Spouts Big Govt at Austin Festival
President Obama traveled here to the ongoing South by Southwest festival from Washington, D.C. — and so did I. In his March 11 presentation, he…
National Review
Obama Lectures Britons About Europe – Perhaps It Should Be the Other Way Around
U.S. News & World Report
Apple Employees: Just Say No
The FBI is putting relentless pressure on Apple to hack the encrypted iPhone recovered from the San Bernardino shooters. For thwarting ongoing efforts to force…
National Review
The CFPB is a Great Example of Why People Feel Powerless
Tomorrow, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Richard Cordray takes the stand at a House Financial Services Committee hearing. He deserves to be hauled over the…
Forbes
GOP Releases Contested 2017 Balanced Budget Proposal — With A Regulatory Budget Alongside
House Republican leadership released their 2017 “Balanced Budget for a Stronger America” fiscal year budget proposal. It seeks to balance the budget in 10…
Washington Examiner
Want to save lives? Don’t regulate e-cigarettes
Smoking kills nearly half a million Americans every year. Tobacco-less vaping products, like electronic cigarettes, have helped many people kick their deadly smoking habit. So…
CNS News
Skittish About ‘Capitalism’ – But Who Is Really Rigging the Game?
This political season, Americans are skittish about capitalism. Some fear it will create inequality and wage stagnation, while others simply lack clarity on what capitalism…
Real Clear Policy
Labor Regulators Target McDonald’s
Imagine the government brings charges against you but won't tell you what you're accused of. The judge insists you should know and proceeds with the…
Foundation for Economic Education
Government Targets the App Economy
The sharing economy promises such radical change that economist Klaus Schwab is calling it The Fourth Industrial Revolution. But unlike the previous revolutions, its…
Forbes
Yes, The Fiduciary Rule Could Censor Dave Ramsey And Others Providing Over-The-Air Financial Tips
If there were a “fiduciary” rule requiring pundits to accurately describe a pending bill or regulation to their readers, Slate’s Helaine Olen would be in…
Forbes
Three Decades On, The Fight For Economic Freedom Continues
Americans want honorable, thoughtful government but are no longer sure that result is possible. Government has now grown so gigantic, arrogant, powerful, and pervasive that…
Forbes
Nobody Knows The Cost Of Antitrust Regulation, And That’s Bad
Antitrust regulation is hardly insignificant, and its costs need to be recognized in today’s world. We’ve seen interference into ATT‘s attempted merger with T-Mobile, delays…
Forbes
How Fiduciary Rule May Censor Financial Broadcasters Like Dave Ramsey
Popular financial radio show host Dave Ramsey caused a firestorm on Twitter last week when he weighed in against the “fiduciary rule”—the controversial pending Department…
Washington Times
Hindering worker opportunities
Congress passes laws that can upend entire industries, hinder worker opportunities, and raise prices on consumers. But when such laws impact Congress itself,…
CapX
Today’s Free Trade: Not Free and Not Trade
This Thursday, the US Senate Finance Committee will hold a hearing on “Lessons from the past” in implementing free trade deals. There’s a lot to…
Forbes
The Growing Outrage Of Off-The-Books Federal Regulation
President Barack Obama has practically trademarked going around Congress, proclaiming “I’ve got a pen and I’ve got a phone. And that’s all I…