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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opinion
Sobering Film on Nuclear Attack Shows Need for More Nuclear Defense Spending
The Heritage Foundation’s documentary “33 Minutes” may not be the most cheerful holiday season film, but its warning to the American public about the risk of nuclear attack could not be more timely. In recent months, North Korea’s missiles have grown in range and capability. The most recent missile it tested, the Hwasong-15, can reach… -
news
What 3 House Republicans Hope to See in Welfare Reform
Reform of welfare programs is needed to restore incentives for people to work and to learn new job skills, three Republican lawmakers say. Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, began by asking members of a panel to remember the first job they ever had. “For me, it was bailing hay … and it was mowing country lawns…. -
opinion
How Congress Can Boost Defense Spending Without Busting Budget Caps
Congress and the president are reportedly working on another backroom budget deal that might raise the Budget Control Act spending caps by up to $200 billion over the next two years. Congress should not pass another deal that piles more deficit spending onto future generations. Congress should strengthen and extend spending limits in the Budget… -
news
Q&A: Former CFPB Employee on Why There Aren’t More Republicans in the Agency
Ron Rubin, a lawyer and writer who used to work for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, discusses the nature of the federal agency with The Daily Signal’s Genevieve Wood. What follows is an edited transcript. Wood: There’s been a lot of controversy around this Consumer Protection Financial Bureau. The head of this agency, the director, Mr…. -
news
House Conservatives Advocate Breaking Caps on Defense Spending
With government funds running out Dec. 8, House conservatives argue that lawmakers should boost military spending in a new funding bill. “We are breaking the caps on defense,” Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, said Thursday at Conversations with Conservatives, a monthly Q&A with reporters hosted by House conservatives and The Heritage Foundation. Jordan, along with other… -
opinion
Podcast: What You Need to Know About the Upcoming Budget Deadline
Congress is facing a budget deadline Dec. 8. Heritage Foundation’s Romina Boccia explains what’s at stake. Plus: the latest on the tax reform debate, and Poland’s push for no work on Sundays. -
news
Mulvaney Freezes Hiring Amid Fight for Control at the CFPB
Recently appointed acting Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Mick Mulvaney instituted a temporary hiring freeze at the Obama-era regulatory body Monday but denied charges that he plans to dismantle the agency. The hiring freeze as well as a freeze on any new regulations or guidance will last for 30 days. Mulvaney’s first day… -
opinion
CFPB Deputy Director Is Challenging the President’s Authority. Here’s Why Her Arguments Are Flawed.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has been a political hot potato since the day it was created as part of the legislative response to the 2008 financial crisis. A brainchild of then-Harvard law professor (now U.S. senator) Elizabeth Warren, the bureau was established in 2010 as an independent agency through the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform… -
opinion
Defense Spending Bill Gets It Right on Nuclear and Missile Defense
Last week, Congress passed the fiscal year 2018 National Defense Authorization Act, sending it to the president’s desk. This bill advances many commendable nuclear weapon and missile defense policies. The bill affirms Congress’ commitment to ensuring strong, extended measures of deterrence, and it addresses Russian arms control violations—including Russia’s potential violations of the New Strategic… -
opinion
Podcast: What Welfare Reforms Would Promote Happiness, Prosperity
What kind of reforms would encourage work, marriage, and result in happier lives for some Americans? Heritage Foundation’s Marie Fishpaw joins us to explain that, and why the individual mandate isn’t working. Plus: why President Donald Trump is making the right call on elephant hunting. -
opinion
Congress Should Reject a Reckless Budget Deal That Busts Spending Caps
A new report from Congressional Quarterly indicates Congress will soon announce another backroom budget deal that would bust the spending caps set by the Budget Control Act. According to the report, the deal would break the discretionary spending caps by at least $182 billion over the next two years. If true, this would bust the… -
news
Trump Administration’s 2 Priorities for Welfare Reform Executive Order
President Donald Trump is making welfare reform a major priority and will sign an executive order laying out the administration’s goals while also urging action by Congress, a White House official said Thursday. Trump’s executive order will be twofold, said Paul Winfree, director of budget policy at the White House. The order will state the… -
opinion
How the GOP Tax Bill Will Affect the Economy
The House passed its version of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act on Thursday, a bill that would reform the tax code by lowering marginal rates for most households, corporations, and small businesses. The Senate is also working on its own version of the bill. Though the complete details are yet to be finalized, both… -
opinion
Podcast: The Push to Increase Government Regulation of Speech Online
We discuss whether government should regulate social media, the ignorance about communism and its effects, and a new report on the Transportation Security Administration’s failures. -
opinion
The Free Market Beats Government Planning Every Time
One of the most challenging and important jobs for an economics professor is to teach students how little we know and can possibly know. My longtime friend and colleague Thomas Sowell says, “It takes considerable knowledge just to realize the extent of your own ignorance.” Nobel laureate Friedrich August von Hayek admonished, “The curious task… -
opinion
GOP Tax Plan Would Revitalize US Economy, Give Significant Tax Relief
House Republicans unveiled their plan to update the nation’s tax code on Thursday. If they are successful at passing the plan—known as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act—it will mark the first time in more than three decades that Americans will have a chance to experience the benefits of comprehensive, pro-growth tax reform. Tax reform… -
news
146 in Real Estate Industry Buck National Group by Backing GOP Tax Plan
Nearly 150 real estate professionals from 34 states Monday urged congressional Republicans to pass their tax reform package, saying it would “unleash economic growth, create jobs, and increase wages.” In a letter addressed to House Speaker Paul Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, the 146 signers buck their industry’s trade association with support for… -
news
Tax Reform Means Higher Pay for Americans, Council of Economic Advisers Predicts
Lowering the corporate tax rate will spur economic growth and encourage business owners to invest more in their businesses, leading to higher wages for employees, according to a new report from the president's Council of Economic Advisers. The report on tax reform, released Friday, focuses on the expected results of decreasing the corporate tax rate… -
opinion
Why Congress Must Preserve and Extend the 2011 Spending Caps
The Budget Control Act, passed in 2011, is one of the few mechanisms currently in place to control Congress’ appetite for spending. With the national debt projected to skyrocket over the next decade, now is not the time to abandon it. An upcoming report this week from The Heritage Foundation will detail the ways Congress… -
opinion
We Hear You: Debt, Democrats, Deductions, Deficit-Spending, and the Tax Code
Editor's note: We've had so much reader input on Republicans' tax reform proposals that we're devoting a second consecutive compilation to it. Enjoy, and don't forget to write us at [email protected].—Ken McIntyre Dear Daily Signal: Regarding the commentary by Rep. Mark Walker, R-N.C., I think members of Congress are bailing water in a sinking boat…