Economy News
The Daily Signal reports on economy news with analysis and commentary on growth, recession risks, employment, and financial trends.
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news
House Votes to Raise Minimum Wage to $15 an Hour
The House voted 231-199 Thursday to raise the national minimum wage from $7.25 to $15 an hour over six years, with Democrats contending the bill would raise wages for millions of Americans. “If the advocates of this legislation really cared about American workers, they would not fire them,” Rep. Mo Brooks, R-Ala., said on the… -
opinion
Washing Machine Tariffs Are Still Putting Consumers Through the Wringers
While tariffs are forcing American families to pay 12% more for their washing machines, 12 members of Congress from Ohio—from both sides of the political aisle—are urging President Donald Trump to maintain tariffs on washers. These tariffs, which range from 20% to 50%, were imposed back in January 2018 after an investigation that determined the… -
opinion
Leader McCarthy: House Democrats Dead Set on Erasing Economic Gains
Over the last 18 months, the American economy has grown at a record-breaking rate, and the results have had a far-reaching positive impact on communities nationwide. Since January 2017, 5.6 million jobs have been created with the help of Republican-led tax reform, deregulation, and other pro-growth reforms. The unemployment rate is near a 50-year low… -
opinion
Hiking the Minimum Wage Will Hurt, Not Help, Low-Income Americans
Democrats in Congress have again brought the minimum wage to the national political stage. Legislation moving forward in the House, H.R. 582, the Raise the Wage Act, would increase the national minimum wage from the current $7.25 per hour to $15 per hour in increments spanning the next five years. The minimum wage is a… -
opinion
Podcast: What’s Wrong With the $15 Minimum Wage?
House Democrats are poised to pass a $15 minimum wage this week—a policy that’s become more and more mainstream within the Democratic Party. But would it actually help workers? What effect would it have on the economy? And what effect has it already had in places where it’s been tried? We ask those questions and… -
news
Labor Secretary Acosta Resigns Amid Epstein Controversy
Unable to put to rest questions of his handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case, Labor Secretary Alex Acosta resigned Friday after serving more than two years in the position. “A Cabinet position is a temporary trust. I must set aside a part of me that wants to continue my service with thousands of talented professionals… -
opinion
Here Are 6 Ways a New Report Devastates the $15 Minimum Wage
Just in time for next week’s likely House vote on a federal $15 minimum wage, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has come out with a caustic report on the consequences of the policy. The report confirms what even liberal economists caution: A $15 minimum wage would “risk undesirable and unintended consequences” and lead to a… -
opinion
The Unintended Consequences of Student Loans
Every year, colleges raise tuition prices yet again. That’s helped create the student debt crisis, and it’s causing more young people to skip college altogether. But what’s the government’s role here? Is it making things worse? And if so, what’s the solution? Richard Vedder, author of “Restoring the Promise: Higher Education in America” shares his… -
opinion
USDA Is Funneling ‘Trade Aid’ to the Agriculture Sector. It’s Old-Fashioned Corporate Welfare.
There is renewed hope for trade talks with China—a welcome development for the American economy. But the damage caused by the fight continues. The U.S. Department of Agriculture is using the situation as an excuse to funnel more taxpayer money to the agricultural industry. It is spending $16 billion on trade aid for farmers affected… -
opinion
Switzerland Has a Budget Surplus. Here’s How, and What the US Could Learn.
As much of Washington seems resigned to sit idly by and allow the federal government to gorge on trillion-dollar deficits and push the national debt to 78% of gross domestic product—the highest levels in the post-World War II era—it might seem like a fiscally prudent budget is the stuff of fantasy. After all, the Congressional… -
opinion
The Injustice of Canceling Student Debt
This week, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez claimed that it was “literally easier” for her to win the congressional election than pay off her student loan debt—which says something unfortunate about both the cost of college and the electorate’s choices. Ocasio-Cortez was commenting on Sen. Bernie Sanders’ new plan to eliminate $1.6 trillion in student debt and… -
opinion
Forgiving Student Debt Is Not the Way to Ensure Economic Freedom
In today’s dynamic society, we have a general consensus that investments in time and effort, such as excelling in the classroom and earning degrees, help to achieve intended goals. But when it comes to financial investments in our futures, especially in the case of student loans, consensus surrounding sacrifices and consequences associated with the pursuit… -
opinion
US-China Talks at G-20 Unlikely to End Trade Disputes
President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, are set to meet on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit in Osaka, Japan, this weekend. The two will try to unpack what’s going on in the U.S.-China trade dispute, why negotiations have become difficult, and how the two sides can come to a… -
opinion
Most G-20 Countries Aren’t Economically Free. The US Can Help Change That.
Although much of the focus at this weekend’s G-20 summit in Osaka, Japan, will be on the U.S-China impasse on trade and other issues, more attention should be paid to the sorry record that most G-20 countries have when it comes to economic freedom. Each year, The Heritage Foundation ranks countries according to their levels… -
opinion
Treasury Department Just Fixed a Situation That Threatened School Choice
Lawmakers intended with the 2017 tax cuts not only to promote economic growth and job creation and to allow families to keep more of their hard-earned money, but also to make the federal tax code more neutral toward state tax policy. But state-based tax credit scholarship programs got unintentionally caught up in the broader reform…. -
opinion
Weak Jobs Report Shows the Cost of Trade Wars
The Bureau of Labor Statistics released a lackluster jobs report on Friday, falling short of most expert predictions, and continuing to make the case that bad economic policy, like tariffs, will not serve U.S. interests in the long term. The report showed a gain of 76,000 jobs, falling well below the 180,000 predicted by experts…. -
opinion
Economic Freedom Key to Ensuring We Have Dynamic Entrepreneurs
THE HAGUE, Netherlands–Proactively promoting entrepreneurship, innovation, and economic freedom continues to be a critical pillar of U.S. engagement with the world. One sign of this is the Global Entrepreneurship Summit, which the United States co-hosts this week with the Netherlands. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte opened the 2019 summit… -
opinion
Trump’s Proposed Budget Adopts 61% of Heritage Proposals
“Can Congress Avoid a Debt Default and $125 Billion in Spending Cuts?” That’s the scary headline of a New York Times article by Emily Cochrane this week. The headline refers to the looming debt limit deadline, when the Treasury will run out of authority to continue borrowing, absent a change to the law. The timing… -
news
3 Things to Know About a Disaster Spending Bill Conservatives Couldn’t Stop
A $19.1 billion disaster aid bill that faced significant opposition from conservative Republicans passed the House on Monday evening by a lopsided vote of 354-58. Only Republicans voted against the measure, which includes funding in the aftermath of hurricanes, wildfires, and other storms as well as money to help Puerto Rico rebuild from hurricane damage… -
opinion
Americans Need Answers As New Tariffs Hit
The long U.S.-China trade war is about to hit another mile marker. New tariffs, announced in May on $200 billion worth of imports from China, and $60 billion worth of exports to China, go into effect June 1. Tariffs are a tax on American consumers and businesses, and the administration has already begun a process…