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opinion
New Bill to Tax Stock Market Could Devastate Ordinary Savings and Retirement
A new tax proposal in Congress aims to stick it to the rich. But if passed, it could devastate the U.S. financial system and ruin the value of ordinary Americans’ retirement accounts. The proposal, introduced by a team of Democrats in the House and Senate, would assess a penalty each time someone sells a stock,… -
opinion
Rejecting Much-Needed Reforms, Agriculture Committee’s Farm Bill Favors Status Quo on Costly Subsidies
The House Agriculture Committee’s farm bill is a complete rejection of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s 2018 farm bill principles when it comes to farm subsidies. Here are a few examples: USDA principle: “Provide a fiscally responsible farm bill that reflects the administration’s budget goals.” The committee’s farm bill doesn’t include any of the Trump… -
opinion
Responding to a Critic of Having More Freedom in Agriculture
A former Obama administration official has written a new agricultural study that is critical of The Heritage Foundation’s publication “Farms and Free Enterprise: A Blueprint for Agricultural Policy.” Most of the arguments in this agricultural special interest-sponsored study are the same recycled claims that get trotted out any time someone challenges the farm subsidy status… -
opinion
Senate Agriculture Appropriations Bill Would Expand Crony Handouts for Cotton Industry
What are Senate appropriators doing to address two new farm programs whose costs are spiraling out of control? They are increasing the costs even more. Cotton growers just can’t seem to get enough handouts, and many Senate appropriators are happy to funnel even more money their way at the expense of taxpayers. The Senate agriculture… -
news
Trump’s Agriculture Chief Tosses Out Michelle Obama’s School Lunch Rules
Former first lady Michelle Obama’s dictates on school lunches were thrown out Monday by one of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet members. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue signed a proclamation to begin to undo federal standards that the Obama administration placed on lunches in public schools and return those decisions to local schools. “This announcement is the… -
news
Stock Market Reacts Better for Trump Than Any Previous President-Elect
The U.S. stock market has been on an unprecedented upward climb since President-elect Donald Trump won the White House. Trump’s election sparked the biggest one-month S&P 500 rally in its 93 years of existence. The index rose nearly 5 percent from Nov. 9 to Friday morning, breaking the previous 30-day record set after the election… -
opinion
Why the Stock Market Shouldn’t Be Used to Judge Brexit
Last week, the United Kingdom decided to leave the European Union. The U.K.’s earlier decision to stay out of the euro currency (which most, but not all, EU member states use) contains an unexpected lesson about economics and humility. In 2003, British Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown announced that Britain’s economy had not met… -
opinion
The Connection Between China’s Stock Market Collapse and Its Past Spectacular Growth
In mid-June, China’s Shanghai Composite Index was up a dazzling 60 percent since the beginning of the year. It was the highest level in more than six years. Some took it as a sign that the recent weakness in China’s economy would be short-lived. Yet it is only a little more than two months later,… -
opinion
The Fed Shouldn’t Pay Attention to Short-Term Changes in Stock Market
Back in grad school (not all that long ago), we pondered whether a central bank should target equity (or other asset) prices to conduct monetary policy. In theory, as the value of consumers’ stock portfolios rises, they will spend more, because they are wealthier. It turned out, though, that the empirical link among monetary policy,… -
opinion
Three Things Americans Should Know About the Stock Market Turmoil
It’s too early to know if the stock market drop is just one of the periodic corrections by which the market reallocates capital to more profitable uses, or the start of a more dramatic contraction signaling a long-term decline. In any case, if the roller coaster ride of the last few days goes on much… -
opinion
How US Should Respond to China’s Stock Market Collapse
To give perspective, China is the world’s second largest economy, as well as the second largest importer. It is the largest trading nation for 75 countries and is by far the largest importer of commodities in the world. Over the past seven years, China has accounted for an incredible one-third of global growth. But its… -
news
China’s Economic Woes Jolt Global Stock Markets
U.S. stock markets plummeted Monday, furthering a global market decline that has eliminated nearly $10 trillion from international shares as concerns grow over China’s economic health. The Dow Jones industrial average plunged more than 1,000 points soon after trading began, continuing losses from last week that marked the worst for U.S. stocks in four years…. -
opinion
Why The Chinese Stock Market Continues to Unravel
As the Chinese stock market unravels, liberal economists are eating their words on the supposed benefits of heavy government intervention in the financial sector. On Monday, the Shanghai stock index declined by 8.5 percent, the largest single-day drop in 8 years. Before this point, the government had already taken extraordinary steps to further preserve the… -
opinion
Why I’d Never Invest in the Chinese Stock Market (And It’s Not Just Because of the New Decline)
From the summer of 2009 through 2012, I was an American economist living in Beijing. Although an avid stock investor, I have never once owned a Chinese listed company. Let me tell you why. Traditionally, Chinese households have had (basically) two places to put their savings: the banking system and residential real estate. With housing… -
news
In 60 Seconds, Michele Bachmann Reveals the Most Consequential Vote of Her Time in Congress
After eight years in the House of Representatives, the “most consequential” vote of Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann’s career turned out to be the last one she cast. “What we saw last night was a denial of our Constitution,” @MicheleBachmann on the #CRomnibus Speaking with CNN’s Wolf Blitzer today, Bachmann, a Republican, reflected on her six… -
news
17 Great Photos You Might Have Missed This Week
From a giant government bill to royalty — here's a quick recap of this week's news in photos. After a chaotic day in House, lawmakers narrowly approved the government spending bill late Thursday night. “My job tonight is to say thank you, and Merry Christmas,” House Speaker John Boehner said after the 219-206 vote. (That's not… -
news
Watch Megyn Kelly Take on Ivy Leaguers for Delaying Exams: ‘In America, We Have Grit’
Columbia Law School’s decision to delay final exams for students over the Ferguson and Eric Garner decisions isn’t sitting well with Fox News’ Megyn Kelly. “In America, we have grit, and we have responsibilities that need to get fulfilled even if something upsetting happens to us,” Kelly said on last night’s show. Watch the TV… -
opinion
EPA Finds Fun and Creative Ways to Waste Taxpayer Dollars
Senator Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., recently issued a report entitled “The Science of Splurging,” which provides several examples of how the Environmental Protection Agency wastes millions of dollars on meaningless projects, frivolous luxuries, and outright employee fraud. Here are just some of the examples: Contractor “Man Caves.” The EPA’s Office of Inspector General found that contractors… -
opinion
U.S. International Broadcasting in the Omnibus
It is a measure of the importance attached by Congress to U.S. international broadcasting in the battle space of ideas that the 2014 Omnibus Bill, which passed the House yesterday, not only funds fully the agency that oversees it — the Broadcasting Board of Governors — but adds some $6 million on top of its funding request. The BBG requested… -
opinion
Where Does Your State Rank in Disaster Preparedness?
A cool new graphic from Foodstorage.com ranks how prepared each state is for disasters. The chart compares how much money the state has for disasters to the likelihood that state will face a disaster. The outcome is interesting because regardless of their ranking, most states are unprepared for emergencies. One of the main reasons for…
