Congressional Recess: The Battle of Ideas
All the political action this month will take place outside Washington, D.C. And that’s as it should be. In a healthy republic, lawmakers hear from… Read More
Another Flawed Executive Order: Chemical Security and Government Overreach
President Obama issued his latest in a long line of executive orders yesterday. The order, titled “Improving Chemical Facility Safety and Security,” is rather inaptly… Read More
Bunny Disaster Plans: Unveiling the Magic Behind Regulations
Cartoon star Bullwinkle the Moose had a running gag in which he tried to pull a rabbit out of a hat and ended up facing… Read More
A Band-Aid for Derivatives Trading
American regulators yesterday agreed, both internally and with the European Union, on how to deal with the trading of financial derivatives beyond U.S. shores. The… Read More
Tales of the Red Tape #40: The USDA Rabbit Police
There’s no good way to deliver this disturbing bit of news except to come right out with it: Marty the Magician and others in the… Read More
D.C. Police to Scalpers: One Strike and You’re Jailed
Ordering the police to arrest every lawbreaker, no matter how trivial the offense or harmless the offender, appeals to legislators who want to appear “tough… Read More
Environmentalists Sue, Settle, and Apologize Later
Environmental groups are the biggest abusers of a legal tactic known as “sue and settle,” according to a recent report from the U.S. Chamber of… Read More
What Obama’s Campaign Group Won’t Tell You About Obamacare
Organizing for Action, President Obama’s campaign group, is out this morning with its first advertisement promoting Obamacare. The ad claims to tell the “facts” surrounding… Read More
Kline and Rokita Unveil Rewrite of No Child Left Behind
House Education and the Workforce Committee chairman John Kline (R–MN) and Representative Todd Rokita (R–IN) have introduced the Student Success Act (SSA)—a proposal to rewrite… Read More
Carbon (And Practically Everything Else) Just Got More Expensive
The Department of Energy (DOE) finalized a rule at the end of May that mandates the amount of energy microwaves can use on standby mode… Read More
Washington Bureaucrats Unconstitutionally Making Public Policy
Washington, D.C., is the country’s last “company town,” and the big industry is the federal government. So it isn’t received well here when someone dares… Read More
Top 5 Reports of the Week
1. Benghazi: Searching for Truth, Exposing Failure, and Saluting Heroism 2. Ghosts of Benghazi 3. Red Tape Rising: Regulation in Obama’s First Term 4. The Real Secret Behind the… Read More
To Prevent Another Factory Tragedy, Bangladesh Should Embrace Economic Freedom
Over the past two weeks, the world has looked on in shock and horror as the mangled bodies of Bangladeshi garment workers were pulled from… Read More
Housing Finance Nominee: Expect Big Government Housing Policies Doomed to Fail
President Obama nominated Representative Mel Watt (D–NC) as new chief regulator to the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), replacing the current acting director Edward DeMarco…. Read More
New Red Tape Rising Report: Regulation in Obama’s First Term
Congress and the White House have been focused for much of this year on the federal budget—rightfully so, given perennial deficits and unsustainable levels of… Read More
Internet Sales Tax Hits Fastest-Growing Industries
The Marketplace Fairness Act, also known as the Internet sales tax, would burden the fastest-growing industries in the United States with a tidal wave of… Read More
Top-Down Cybersecurity Regulations: An Outdated Solution
Cybersecurity is a hot issue, and with the House of Representatives’s approval of the controversial Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA) this week it… Read More
With Climate Change Science Unsettled, a Carbon Tax is Even More Useless
Reuters’s environment correspondent Alister Doyle provides even more fodder for why a carbon (energy) tax or the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) regulation of greenhouse gas… Read More
The Outrageous Statements of Obama’s EPA Nominee
Today the Senate held a confirmation hearing for Gina McCarthy, President Obama’s nominee to head the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Heritage has provided its own… Read More
7 Steps to Solve Congressional Cyber Stalemate
Congress is back in session and “ready” to tackle cybersecurity. Regrettably, some in Congress are again proposing 19th century–style legislative solutions to this ultimately 21st-century… Read More
Internet Hit by Largest Cyber Attack Yet
This week, the largest cyber attack to date hit the Internet. Spamhaus, an anti-spam company, placed Cyberbunker on their black-list of spam generating companies. Cyberbunker… Read More
Making Death Cost Less
Some people bury themselves in their work. At Saint Joseph Abbey in southern Louisiana, burying is the work. Monks at Saint Joseph make inexpensive caskets—and… Read More
VIDEO: Government Red Tape Leaves Illinois Man on Verge of Bankruptcy
Government regulations cost Steven Lathrop decades of his life and pushed him into financial ruin, according to a new video released by Senator Ron Johnson… Read More
Environmentalists and Energy Experts Working Together for Fracking Solutions?
Saving the environment and producing shale oil and gas by hydraulic fracturing (fracking) are not mutually exclusive; however, it seems the two sides have been… Read More
Obamacare at 3 Years: Unrealistic Expectations for ACOs
Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs)—a concept that a group of doctors and hospitals will work collectively to manage the care and costs of Medicare patients—were expected… Read More
Obamacare: Projected Premium Increases by State
Remember that repetitive presidential promise to “cut the cost of a typical family’s premium by up to $2,500 a year”? As 2014 and full implementation… Read More
Bloomberg Soda Ban Fizzles
New York City Mayor Nanny Michael Bloomberg got a well-deserved legal spanking of his own today from a state court judge ruling against his imperial ban… Read More
Cybersecurity Executive Order Is a Mistake Every Way You Look at It
President Obama plans to issue his cybersecurity executive order on Wednesday, following his State of the Union address, according to The Hill. Based on drafts… Read More
EnergyNews
Free-Market Opportunities Propel North Dakota to Top Job Creator
North Dakota led the nation in job creation in 2012, according to a new report released by Gallup. The state has an unemployment rate of… Read More
Tales of the Red Tape #39: Swapping Wealth Creation for Regulatory Claptrap
Not many people know the meaning of “swap” (as in a financial hedge, not flea market). Only the most sophisticated investors actually understand the complexities… Read More
