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
What Marie Harf Got Right: We Need to Promote Economic Freedom in the Middle East
State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf recently blamed “lack of opportunity for jobs” as a root cause of terrorism in the Middle East. Her assertion, made in an interview Monday, that “we cannot kill our way out of this war” is unlikely to replace “I have not yet begun to fight” on lists of famous military… -
news
Companies Benefiting From Energy Department’s Newest Solar Farm Also Recipients of Export-Import Bank Financing
This week, the Obama administration praised the opening of a solar farm in California, which was constructed with the backing of a $1.5 billion loan guarantee from the Department of Energy. But the project’s critics argue it “reeks of cronyism,” and they’re finding themselves in lockstep with opponents of the controversial Export-Import Bank, as the… -
opinion
More and More Economic Research Refutes Piketty
In his surprise best seller Capital in the Twenty-First Century, Thomas Piketty argues that the wealth of rich owners of capital grows faster than the wages of workers in capitalist economies. Hence, inequality always increases unless destructive world wars or heavy-handed government regulation of the economy intervene. To remedy modern inequality, he proposes punitive taxes… -
opinion
Why Washington Shouldn’t Control Transportation Decisions
Predictably, President Barack Obama’s 2016 budget request calls for higher taxes to partially finance a $4-trillion spending tsunami. One of the more senseless tax hikes would fall on multinational businesses and is sought to pay for a transportation budget more lavish than necessary. It’s baffling why Obama would propose this tax on businesses’ foreign income,… -
opinion
How the Welfare State Penalizes Parents Who Marry
Fifty-one years ago, President Lyndon B. Johnson launched the War on Poverty. Since then, taxpayers have spent more than $22 trillion fighting Johnson’s war, three times the cost of all military wars in U.S. history. Last year, taxpayers spent more than $920 billion on 80 different anti-poverty programs. Despite this spending, the percentage of Americans… -
news
13 Charts Measuring Economic Freedom Around the Globe
The results are in. When it comes to economic freedom, Hong Kong takes the gold, with Singapore following closely behind and New Zealand rounding out the top three in The Heritage Foundation’s 2015 Index of Economic Freedom. The annual index, now in its 21st year, is a guide for measuring improvements in 186 countries’ economic… -
opinion
‘The Budget Book’ Offers 106 Ways to Cut Spending
Ever heard of the Agriculture Risk Coverage program? How about the Price Loss Coverage program? You’re paying for them. Along with the Conservation Technical Assistance program, the Biological and Environmental Research program, and the USDA Catfish Inspection program. The list goes on, but why have I highlighted these particular entries? Because of the millions we… -
news
The History of Defense Spending in One Chart
Last week, President Obama outlined his budget proposal for fiscal year 2016. It includes an increase in defense spending over the next 10 years to keep pace with inflation but falls short of the level proposed by The Heritage Foundation. After a 25 percent reduction in annual spending over the past six years, Heritage's Diem Nguyen Salmon… -
news
House Panel Won’t Commit to Reauthorizing Export-Import Bank
Debate over the future of the Export-Import Bank is beginning to ramp up on Capitol Hill again. Today, the House Financial Services Committee rejected an amendment that would have forced the panel to formally consider reauthorization of the bank. Three Democrats on the committee—ranking member Maxine Waters of California and Reps. Gwen Moore of Wisconsin… -
opinion
The President’s Proposed Budget Meets Late Night Television
President Obama’s proposed $4 trillion budget got a taste of late-night television. Comedian Jimmy Fallon joked: “Speaking of Obama, [Monday] he presented a $4 trillion budget that he says would help the middle class. And then the middle class said, ‘You know what, how about just giving us $4 trillion? That will help us. We… -
opinion
There Is a Simple Formula for Unleashing Economic Prosperity
The age old question in economics is this: how does a nation or state create economic growth and rising living standards for its citizens? Once upon a time superstitious economists believed that growth was a function of the constellation of the stars. That kind of belief in astrology as a predictor of growth was no… -
news
Obama’s Student Loan Forgiveness Program Has $21.8 Billion Shortfall
The Obama administration’s student loan program came up $21.8 billion short last year because of unpaid and forgiven loans. According to Politico, which found the number buried in President Obama’s 2016 budget proposal this week, the shortfall is “the largest ever recorded for any government credit program.” The president’s student loan initiative limits student loan payments to… -
opinion
How Economic Freedom Reduces Poverty
Suppose someone told you there were over two decades of economic data showing the secret of success for every nation in the world and that a Nobel laureate in economics inspired the methodology that was used to analyze that data. Would you sit up and listen? I hope so, because if you did, you would… -
opinion
Support Family-Friendly, Economically-Wise Policies—Not Transportation Pork or Dependency
Is Obama’s new federally-funded infrastructure package the key to strengthening our nation’s families? That’s the argument of W. Bradford Wilcox of the American Enterprise Institute and Robert Lehrman of the Urban Institute in their essay “How to Revive the American Dream in Blue-Collar America.” It’s a misguided policy prescription, the fruit of a commitment to… -
opinion
January Jobs Report Brings Good News, But Will It Last?
As far as the Bureau of Labor Statistics is concerned, the economy started 2015 with a bang. The agency’s January employment figures found strong growth throughout the labor market. Employers created more than a quarter-million jobs, labor force participation surged and wages rose. The report is long-overdue good news for workers who have suffered through… -
opinion
Sub-Saharan Africa Is Struggling to Achieve Economic and Democratic Freedom
Two new reports show that Africa still has significant room for improvement in the areas of economic and democratic freedom. The Sub-Saharan Africa region improved only slightly in the 2015 edition of The Heritage Foundation/Wall Street Journal’s annual Index of Economic Freedom: Thirty-nine of the region’s economies remain “mostly unfree” or “repressed.” In the Freedom… -
opinion
106 Budget Cuts Congress Could Make Right Now
It is budget season in Washington and the debate is focused on who wants to increase spending and by how much. But the debate should be focused on how to reduce the size and scope of government. Across the country, Americans remain deeply concerned about growing deficits and debt. Washington’s obsession with increasing the size… -
news
Scott Walker Touts Property Tax Cut, School Choice Expansion in Budget Address
MADISON, Wis.—Gov. Scott Walker unveiled his proposal for Wisconsin’s state budget on Tuesday night, and he did not shy away from offering bold ideas. The second-term Republican governor has proposed a budget for 2015-17 that would cut property taxes again, eliminate the cap on the state’s school choice program, and reform government by merging agencies…. -
opinion
What French McDonald’s Restaurants Tell Us About the Pros and Cons of a Minimum Wage Hike
President Obama said in a YouTube interview last month that he wanted to focus, during his last two years as president on helping people get ahead. “In particular, how can I make sure that folks who are working hard…cannot just survive, but how can they thrive? How can they get ahead?” Obama said. Many think… -
news
This Bookstore Is Closing Because of San Francisco’s Upcoming Minimum Wage Hike
After 18 years in business, San Francisco bookstore Borderlands Books announced it will close in March, despite having its “best year” in 2014. Why? According to the bookstore, it’s because of San Francisco’s upcoming minimum wage hike. We’re tremendously sorry to announce that Borderlands Books will be closing in March. More info: http://t.co/hKZA1tTbsb — Borderlands Books (@borderlands_sf)…