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Trump 401(k) EO helps equalize access to alternative assets
For more than a decade at CEI, I have argued that holders of 401(k)s and other defined-contribution plans should have maximum choice in the…
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Conservative radio and the risks of FCC pressure on broadcast licensees
Conservative radio is one of the most potent forces in American politics. It emerged from Federal Communications Commission (FCC) deregulation that fostered free speech…
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Is regulation killing American innovation?
The federal government micromanages American businesses and citizens through excessive and costly regulations. These rules stifle innovation, limit competitiveness, and hinder job creation, while…
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A provisional look at the Trump 2.0 deregulation record
Early in his first term, Donald Trump ordered agencies to eliminate at least two rules for every “significant” one added – rules generally carrying…
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The week in regulations: Sausage colors and patriotic education
The Federal Reserve cut interest rates. Attorney General Pam Bondi threatened to prosecute hate speech. ABC pulled late night host Jimmy Kimmel off the…
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Free the Economy podcast: Empowering patients with Vance Ginn
In this week’s episode we cover potential changes to quarterly reporting for public companies, state-level AI regulations, spiking gas prices…
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California’s climate disclosure laws will devastate interstate commerce
This week, on behalf of the Competitive Enterprise Institute, I submitted a public comment to the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) notice for…
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Progressive states plan end run around federal labor law
The five-member National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), the main federal labor law enforcement agency, is currently down to just one member and therefore…
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GOOD Act markup: The first step in illuminating regulatory dark matter
The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee (HSGAC) is soon expected to mark up the Guidance Out of Darkness (GOOD) Act, an important…
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Some minimum requirements for a proper WOTUS rule
In the coming weeks, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the US Army Corps of Engineers are expected to release a proposed rule defining…
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House subcommittee to discuss important Clean Air Act bills
The House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Subcommittee on Environment will be holding a hearing today entitled “From Gridlock to Growth: Permitting Reform Under…
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The week in regulations: Date taxes and manifest mailing
Political commentator Charlie Kirk was killed while speaking at an event. While the Producer Price Index went down in August, the Consumer Price Index…
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Free the Economy podcast: Tariffs and economic freedom with Matt Mitchell
In this week’s episode we cover the latest jobs numbers, the emergent community of abundance fans, the limits to taxing…
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Trump’s Intel stake and the Peronist precedent of Obama’s auto bailouts
President Trump’s decision to take a 10-percent ownership stake in chipmaker Intel has been described by many commentators as “socialism.” Others…
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Putting an end to the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs
The immortality of federal programs no longer seems to be a certainty. A particularly welcome instance of a federal program drawing to a close…
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Trump’s Unified Agenda of deconstruction: Writing rules to erase rules
“It is the policy of my Administration to focus the executive branch’s limited enforcement resources on regulations squarely authorized…
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The week in regulations: Coachella air quality and yogurt vitamins
The Federal Register, which tracks daily regulatory activity, has become less transparent. Jobs numbers for August were disappointing and actually shrank in June…
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Tariffs are taxes and must be legislatively accountable
The Federal Circuit Court of Appeals has delivered a decisive rebuke to the new presidential reciprocal and trafficking tariffs. It ruled that a…
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The beginning of the end for net-zero financial alliances
At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, many of the world’s premier financial institutions formed bold climate finance coalitions. The most notable of these…
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Free the Economy podcast: Clear-but-false ideas with Kevin Williamson
In this week’s episode we cover the Trump tariffs being struck down, Biden’s competition order being vacated, and new research on…
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Messy merger math and the congressional fix
The Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division has offered a glimpse into premerger enforcement activities over the past six months. In February 2025, the new…
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There’s something wrong with the Federal Register
The Trump-era Federal Register website has been glitching recently. Nearly two weeks ago, I noted on X/Twitter (tagging both @USNatArchives and @FedRegister) that…
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The week in regulations: Deepwater ports and ASCII relays
A court ruled President Trump’s Liberation Day tariffs unconstitutional. The case now moves to the Supreme Court. Countries around the world stopped shipping parcels…
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Free the Economy podcast: Ideological diversity on the right with Peter Lipsett
In this week’s episode we cover Ray Dalio’s Big Debt Cycle, scandal in climate finance, jobs destroyed by tariffs, why…
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Washington just bought Intel—and sold capitalism
Back in 2010, I testified before Congress against reauthorizing the so-called America COMPETES Act. That legislation was the precursor to the much-ballyhooed CHIPS…
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The week in regulations: Bird hunting and food coloring
The Federal Register’s website became less transparent about rule counts and other data. President Trump threatened to send the military into a third city.
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DC Circuit Court shields proxy advisor duopoly
In an unfortunate move, the DC Circuit Court of Appeals recently struck down the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) 2020 Proxy Advisor Rule.
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The harm is the process: Unconstitutional NLRB proceedings halted
The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals threw a wrench into the gears of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) this week, and for good…
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Free the Economy podcast: Subsidies for billionaires with David McGarry
In this week’s episode we cover White House intervention in corporate ownership, the nation’s falling economic freedom ranking, and welcome…
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The current state of pharmaceutical tariffs
Background Amid the Trump trade upheaval, pharmaceutical products receive different treatment than many other US imports. Pharmaceuticals are treated differently for reasons such…
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Virginia regulations guarantee secret ballots for public sector union elections
New regulations from the Virginia Department of Labor and Industry on “Local Government Union Requirements and Employee Protections” became effective July 30, 2025.
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Antitrust abuse threatens America’s AI dominance
On July 14, 2025, Jensen Huang, CEO of Santa Clara-based NVIDIA, and President Donald Trump agreed to allow NVIDIA to resume its exports…
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The week in regulations: Import paperwork and postal possession
The 2025 Federal Register topped 40,000 pages. President Trump met with Vladimir Putin in Alaska. The Producer Price index rose at its fastest level…
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Power plant greenhouse gas emissions don’t contribute significantly to ‘dangerous air pollution’
CEI recently submitted comments on the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Proposed Rule to repeal greenhouse gas (GHG) emission standards for fossil fuel…
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Free the Economy podcast: Welfare and work with Kevin Corinth
In this week’s episode we cover new inflation data, public attitudes about Social Security, and California’s self-inflicted energy crisis. Our…
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Trump revokes Biden’s bogus competition order, but it’s only a start
President Donald Trump just revoked President Biden’s 2021 “Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy.” That’s welcome news, as I explain…
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EPA right to propose repeal of 2024 power plant mercury rule
The Obama EPA’s 2012 rule for mercury emissions from coal-fired power plants may have been the agency’s least defensible measure ever under the Clean…
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Happy birthday, Smokey Bear! Let’s fight forest fires the right way
Smokey Bear, the famous US Forest Service (USFS) mascot, celebrated his 81st birthday this past Saturday, August 9. Smokey Bear was created in…
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July CPI: Inflation still above target, politicized clouds on the horizon
Today’s CPI report is not apocalyptic, but still concerning. This is in line with expectations. The CPI rose 0.2 percent during July, and…
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Closing the window on public media funding
A door has closed, but windows remain open. Recently, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) announced that it would discontinue operations in…
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Half of 2025’s public laws are Biden rule killers
In a notable twist, Congress has spent half of 2025’s lawmaking undoing Biden regulations. So far in the 119th Congress, 31 public laws…
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The week in regulations: Blue food coloring and pipeline recordkeeping
The Liberation Day tariffs took effect on August 7. The president continues to announce new tariffs on pharmaceuticals, semiconductors, and more. Republicans are proposing…
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Trump’s economy off to a slow start
Last week, the Bureau of Economic Analysis released its estimates of the performance of the US economy in the second quarter. The headline…
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Trump EO on debanking is a mixed bag for financial freedom
President Trump’s new Executive Order (EO) on debanking correctly decries the weaponization of the financial regulation, and contains many good provisions preventing government…
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Free the Economy podcast: Girlbossing the discourse with Emma Camp
In this week’s episode we cover the controversy at the Bureau of Labor Statistics, myths of the auto industry, and a…
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AI’s real job threat is to Washington, not workers
There’s no denying artificial intelligence (AI) can replace a lot—including, eventually, the very think tankers analyzing its effects as we do occasionally here at…
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The CAT’s nine lives could be up
The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals recently vacated a funding proposal for the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) largest regulatory program to date.
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BLS data is faulty, not rigged
The federal government’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) has struggled in recent years to produce an accurate measure of the national employment situation. President…
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The week in regulations: Nuclear coolant and medical food
President Trump’s Liberation Day tariffs are set to take effect on August 7 for countries he did not strike deals with. He is also…
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How ‘Unrules’ are powering down the bureaucracy
The year 2025 may be remembered as the year regulation hit pause. As of the end of July, 1,518 finalized federal rules have been…