At the very least, John McCain's selection of Sarah Palin shakes up the race and steals a bit of Obama's thunder. Palin will be extremely popular with the Republican…
The annual U.S. News & World Report college rankings are a terrific sign that American higher education is a market-based system that works. Providing all kinds of data to parents…
The college presidents should be applauded for taking this stand. It's clear that the current drinking age law has led young adults engage in all sorts of risky and harmful…
The clearest question-wording issue regards private-school choice. The pollsters asked whether respondents favored letting parents choose private schools "at public expense," a loaded question that biases respondents against choice. Not…
The study points to a legitimate concern -- the rising cost of health care. But it ignores the role that government plays in driving up those costs. Moreover, the authors…
Mass surveillance of American citizens' border crossings has essentially nothing to do with terrorism. DHS' collection and databasing of law-abiding citizens' movements may be done in the name of security,…
While the judge issue continues to dominate the civilian government's attention, the militant Islamist insurgency continues to spread along Pakistan's western frontier with Afghanistan, a development that slowly threatens the…
WASHINGTON -- The goal of the 2002 Sarbanes-Oxley Act was to make corporate accounting more transparent. In practice, a new Cato Institute study finds, the law's requirements have had the…
It's no surprise that Congress is passing lots of resolutions. Such praise and admonitions offers benefits to some constituents and cost little to everyone else, apart from the cost of…
"We've all been told that school districts around the country are feeling the pinch from higher fuel costs. What's never mentioned is that districts are supposedly suffering budget crunches despite…
The travails of the housing and financial sectors appear unlikely to end soon. According to recent studies, home price declines will not stop until excess numbers of homes for sale…
Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf's resignation is an important development with unpredictable implications. Those people who hope that Pakistan's turbulent politics will disappear along with Musharraf are likely to be disappointed.…
[D]espite the widespread sense that [President Musharraf] has drastically eroded the public trust, there is growing doubt that a civilian government is any better equipped to improve Pakistan's shaken economy…
The conclusion of a missile defense deal between the United States and Poland, following on the heels of the conflict in the Caucasus, raises the specter of a new Cold…
President Bush is demonstrating that tails can wag dogs. The White House sent out a legion of unnamed senior officials earlier this week to say they had made clear…
Contrary to the claims of free trade critics, the trade deficit tells us almost nothing about the success or failure of U.S. trade policy. The deficit reflects the continuing inflow…
The GAO report did not make any determination about whether corporations were doing anything abusive at all. Thus Senator Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.) is using his vivid imagination to claim that…
Many foreign policy experts are outraged by Russia's behavior in the Caucasus but seem at a loss to provide useful recommendations. For example: Ronald Asmus and Richard Holbrooke warn…
All nations experience economic downturns, so it would be misleading to over-interpret the current malaise in much of Europe. The real problem is not short-term slumps in selected nations, but…
The conflict between Russia and Georgia, like the conflicts in the Balkans, underlines one of the problems accompanying the spread of democracy. Democracy means government by the people, but…
The latest somber news from Georgia gives little cause for optimism. Georgia's entreaties for a cease-fire with Russia don't appear likely to sway the Kremlin. Even the Western…
In renewing his push for turning Bolivia into a socialist country after handily winning yesterday's recall vote, Evo Morales would be well advised to respect Bolivia's laws and Constitution, something…
The more important issue is whether the McCain and Obama plans are sound tax policy. McCain's tax proposals, in general, would promote economic growth and provide broad-based benefits. By contrast,…
It appears likely that full-blown war could break out between Russian troops and Georgia. While it is unclear who fired the first shot, very strong nationalist impulses are at work…
As the leader of the free world, President Bush should use the bully pulpit to remind leaders in China and elsewhere that basic human rights to life, liberty and property…
Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf tried to throw a wrench in the ruling coalition's plan to impeach him by re-appointing eight deposed judges of the Sindh High Court. Until now, Musharraf…
"Lame duck" translates into Farsi just fine, and Iran has made clear that they do not believe that the Bush administration will launch a war. The Iranians seem determined…
Hugo Chávez's latest measures to concentrate power belies the conciliatory tone he adopted in recent months as a cynical move intended to shore up his declining popularity at home and…
Yesterday, the Fed made it clear that they will not increase the fed funds rate until after the November election. Since the Fed has not followed its own monetary policy…
The Supreme Court ruled in June that three provisions of Washington, D.C.'s gun laws are unconstitutional. The city has responded with new regulations -- one of which is a…
Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill, Washington's chief negotiator regarding the North Korean nuclear crisis, now says that the North must also improve its 'abysmal' human rights situation. One…
The federal government should not be rigging the tax code to artificially favor some investments rather than others. This is corporate welfare on stilts and it does neither the taxpayer…
At 1,158 pages, the long-delayed reauthorization of the Higher Education Act passed by a conference committee last night is a revolting example of Washington at its absolute worst. Packed with…
Although most pundits and industry analysts confidently assert that high prices are here to stay, there's surprisingly little evidence for that proposition. A recent analysis of world crude oil…
The Doha round of WTO talks was put out of its misery today after a ministerial session that has been agonizing for trade-watchers to behold. But the misery for millions…
The record nine-day-long meeting of 30 trade ministers in Geneva is putting trade-watchers on a roller-coaster ride of imminent breakthrough followed by imminent collapse. Although members seem to agree on…
The new budget estimates show that federal spending will top $3.13 trillion in 2009, up 68 percent from $1.86 trillion when the current president came to office in 2001. That…
The incentives to produce abroad weaken when your own currency is in a prolonged decline, the costs of production abroad are in a continuous ascent, and transportation costs are at…
Congress and the President are congratulating themselves for bailing out Fannie and Freddie and imposing more regulatory control with the excuse that they pose a threat to financial market stability.…
The U.S. automotive industry is in transition, but it is certainly not threatened. The effects of rising fuel and food prices, declining home values, and the slowing economy have curtailed…
Because F-16s fighter jets are rarely used for law enforcement or counterterrorism, it appears that President Bush's recent shift of $230 million in aid to Pakistan from counterterrorism programs to…
It is disappointing that the Congressional Black Caucus, of all groups, wants to deny African-Americans and all other Americans the right to make choices for themselves and their bodies. The…
In a story entitled "States Slammed by Tax Shortfalls," the Wall Street Journal reported today that states are in "pain" because they are having to "slash" spending. The story uses…
The increase in the federal minimum wage by 70 cents per hour to $6.55 effective today is only the latest example of making economic policy by wishful thinking or hypocrisy.…
Obama's campaign has variously estimated the cost of his plan to taxpayers as between $50 billion and $65 billion per year... Moreover, the Obama campaign may be underestimating the actual…
Colombia has changed dramatically since President Alvaro Uribe took office in 2002. Thanks to increased security and stability, Colombia is today a vibrant country with a thriving economy. This success…
While the U.S. offer on agriculture is a welcome signal of commitment to liberalizing trade through the Doha round, it is woefully inadequate for American taxpayers, and may be inadequate…
On his trip to America's war zones, Sen. Barack Obama again argued that the fight against Al Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan is America's most crucial theater in the…
Trade ministers are meeting in Geneva this week in a last-ditch effort to conclude the Doha Round of multilateral trade talks. Although an ambitious accord would be most welcome news,…
Both Sen. Obama's health care plan and the 1993 Clinton health care plan are based on the concept of 'managed competition.' They would leave the provision of health care in…
As a factual matter, speculators do not 'buy up a large amount of oil and then sell it to each other again and again' as alleged, say, by the airline…
"Argentina is a country long used to hyperpresidentialism, so this morning's congressional decision to reject the punitive export tax scheme imposed on farmers represents not only a victory for the…
"Republican presidential candidate John McCain told the NAACP this morning that after decades of broken promises by the nation's public school systems it is time to give parents an easy…
With each passing day, Afghanistan is looking more like war-torn Iraq. This week, nine US soldiers were killed when 200 armed militants stormed a military outpost in eastern Afghanistan. Several…
Yesterday's Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling in support of terrorist detentions is extremely important because it highlights once again the president's sweeping view of executive power. According to the Bush…
The administration is reportedly proposing a bailout plan for troubled mortgage lenders Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The existing credit line of $2.5 billion enjoyed by both firms will be…
In a response to the recent Supreme Court case on global warming, the Environmental Protection Agency is now calling for an extended period of public comments on the need for…
The time for dillydallying over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac has long since passed. The two companies need to raise capital to shore up their balance sheets. They…
This entire debate is the functional equivalent of rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic. Facing unfunded liabilities in excess of $70 trillion, Medicare is unsustainable without major reform. …
The intelligence community will be slower to rush to judgment on the recent Iranian missile tests than have been the media and political elites. The IC will be collecting…
Treasury Secretary Henry J. Paulson, Jr. is correct when he states that 'many of today's unusually high number of foreclosures are not preventable.' But most proposals, including the Senate…
Unfortunately, the track record of the organizations in this coalition is one of big-government solutions that don't work and put a terrible strain on the economy. A government takeover of…
John McCain's pledge to balance the federal budget by 2013 is a laudable goal if he is willing to battle Congress and push relentlessly to cut spending in the bloated…
The G8 meeting in Hokkaido, Japan, promises to address the problem of African poverty. If the past is any guide, the summit will call for more aid and debt relief,…
Yesterday's rescue of three American hostages from the clutches of the anti-democratic FARC guerillas should remind us that Colombian President Alvaro Uribe is one of America's best friends. One way…
The rescue by the Colombian army of Ingrid Betancourt and three American contractors held hostage for years by the FARC guerrillas constitutes a crippling blow to the rebel group. Due…
WASHINGTON -- Education tax credits -- programs that allow individuals to deduct education expenses from their tax liabilities, or corporations to do the same for donations to scholarship funds --…
Some political observers allege that Republican presidential hopeful John McCain is running for President Bush's third term. At least on foreign policy, their assessment is correct. McCain has championed the…
With the slowing economy, state governments should be tightening their spending belts, especially after huge general fund spending increases of 9 percent in both 2006 and 2007. The current downturn…
WASHINGTON -- Zimbabwe's economic crisis can only be overcome if hyperinflation is stopped. The only way to do this rapidly is to replace central banking -- namely, the Reserve Bank…
WASHINGTON -- As the Doha Round lies in a cryogenic state, there are plenty of measures governments can take to increase trade, investment and economic growth, affirms a trade policy…
WASHINGTON – Federal law requires metropolitan planning organizations to produce long-range transportation plans. According to a new study by the Cato Institute, these plans are not cost-effective, attempt to control…
WASHINGTON--Naomi Klein's popular book The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism, which claims to expose the truth about capitalism, is based on misconstrued statements, a misunderstanding of economic and…
Washington, D.C. - The Cato Institute has announced that Yon Goicoechea, leader of the pro-democracy student movement in Venezuela that successfully prevented President Hugo Chávez's regime from seizing broad dictatorial…
WASHINGTON--Most U.S. school choice studies to date have made mistaken and insupportable claims about market reform in education, finds a Policy Analysis released by the Cato Institute today. "The most intensely…
Of the presidential candidates, John McCain's policies on free trade would be most beneficial to the U.S. economy, finds "Race to the Bottom? The Presidential Candidates' Position on Trade," a…
WASHINGTON - In the last 15 years, American cities have spent $100 billion on new rail transit projects. Proponents now justify the expense with claims that rail will reduce greenhouse gas…
WASHINGTON -- Contrary to political rhetoric, free trade does not cause economic downturns, but in fact it has helped ensure that recessions are "mercifully shorter, shallower, and less frequent" than…
WASHINGTON -- Robert Mugabe will likely remain in power after this weekend's elections despite being largely responsible for Zimbabwe's implosion, finds a study released today by the Cato Institute. "Few people…
WASHINGTON -- The United States suffers from an acute shortage of kidneys for transplant, with 73,000 people waiting for deceased donors to make organs available. Allowing compensation for donors, an…
The worldwide spread of libertarian ideas continues to advance with the launch of a new project based in the former Soviet Republic of Azerbaijan. AzadliqCiragi.org ("Lamp of Liberty" in Azerbaijani),…
"Sovereign Wealth Fund" investment, like all foreign investment, benefits the U.S. economy in myriad ways. Accordingly, it should be treated like all foreign investment: welcomed, but also subject to laws…
E-Verify, the program promoted by the Bush administration to reduce illegal immigration, would be ineffective, invasive and costly, finds a study by the Cato Institute. "A full-fledged Electronic Employment Verification (EEV)…
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