Economics

FACED WITH RISING Medicaid costs, the states have begun to trumpet the oldest illusion about government power — that price controls can make things abundant and “affordable,” in this case prescription drugs. On May 19 the U.S. Supreme Court gave the green light to a Maine program that includes thousands of uninsured citizens in a discount drug-buying program the state Read More ›

[This title of this article as published in the June 3, 2003 edition of The New York Sun is “An Address to the Members of the New York City Council.”] Members of the City Council, I stand before you today to congratulate you on your efforts to redress the great historical wrong of Slavery. Your pioneering initiative has not only Read More ›

NEARLY ALL 50 states are experiencing budget crises, with California in the worst shape, facing a $38.2 billion deficit. Even Arizona has a $1.3 billion shortfall. Washington state has had to close schools. Connecticut is cutting 2,800 public employees. In this context, New York state’s $11.5 billion deficit on a $92 billion budget is only slightly above average, while New Read More ›

TWO YEARS AGO, federal agents in Colorado responded to a complaint at the home of Samuel Patane, an ex-convict under a restraining order for beating his wife. Patane’s probation officer had warned the agents that the convicted felon had a Glock pistol and a penchant for violence. After entering the home, agents began reading Patane his Miranda warnings — the Read More ›

What do the U.S., Ireland, Switzerland and the Cayman Islands have in common, and what do France, Belgium, and Germany have in common? The first group has created a largely investment-friendly environment, with relatively low taxes and government spending, coupled with the rule of law. The second group of countries has maintained very high taxation and government spending. As a Read More ›

The reason President Bush’s tax cut proposal is in trouble is not that it is too big, but because it is not bold enough in removing all taxes from saving and investment. The tax cut debate has clearly shown that among opinion leaders and member of Congress, the split is roughly equal between those who understand how the economy works Read More ›

Discovery Senior Fellow Richard Rahn, a prominent economist who writes regularly in the Washington Times, will appear on the CNBC program “Kudlow & Cramer” tonight at 5 p.m., 8 p.m. and 11 p.m. Pacific. CNBC is on Comcast channel 46 in the Seattle area. To find out your local cable listings, click here.

As the military battle for Iraq comes to an end, a new battle is beginning – how to rebuild Iraq. On one side are those who believe that, by establishing the proper institutions and rules, the Iraqis will be able to rather quickly rebuild their own economy without placing a burden on U.S. taxpayers. The other side, primarily led by Read More ›

Old Europe — France and Germany — is suffering through an economic malaise not seen since Jimmy Carter’s America of a generation ago. But we shouldn’t give up on them yet. A quarter century after Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan began their crusades for high-growth economic policies in the U.K. and the U.S., a quiet movement is underway in the Read More ›

A letter signed by a couple of hundred well-known economists appeared under the headline “Bush tax cuts are the wrong approach” in a paid ad in the Feb. 11 edition of the New York Times. The White House also has released a list of a couple of hundred well-known economists, including this author, who endorse the president’s package. How are Read More ›