Most US Presidents have done dubious pardons – Clinton re Marc Rich and Joe Biden re Hunter Biden etc. But as the libertarian Cato Institute point out, Trump’s pardons are in a different league: Biden’s pardons eliminated roughly $680,000 in financial penalties (fines, restitution, and forfeitures) owed to victims or the government. In contrast, Liz Oyer,…
Corrupt pardons
Corrupt pardons
21 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in economics of crime, law and economics, politics - USA
Fleecing Rich Taxpayers: Europe vs. the United States
13 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, entrepreneurship, human capital, income redistribution, labour economics, labour supply, politics - USA, Public Choice, public economics Tags: taxation and entrepreneurship, taxation and investment, taxation and labour supply
I frequently make the point that America’s tax system is more progressive than European tax systems. But not because the United States imposes higher tax rates on upper-income households. Instead, the big difference is that lower-income and middle-class households in the United States face much lower tax burdens than their European counterparts. In those columns, […]
Fleecing Rich Taxpayers: Europe vs. the United States
Eat the Rich: Sanders and Khanna Introduce Federal Billionaires Tax
12 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, economic growth, entrepreneurship, financial economics, fiscal policy, human capital, income redistribution, labour economics, labour supply, liberalism, macroeconomics, Marxist economics, politics - USA, Public Choice, rentseeking Tags: taxation and entrepreneurship, taxation and investment, taxation and labour supply
Below is my column on Fox.com on the new push by Democrats to impose a wealth tax nationally. While the…
Eat the Rich: Sanders and Khanna Introduce Federal Billionaires Tax
U.S. Withdrawal from UN Framework on Climate Change Underway
11 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in economics of climate change, energy economics, environmental economics, environmentalism, global warming, International law, politics - USA
“The global climate elite are scrambling for relevancy and power. The poll-conscious wind and solar lobbies are disingenuously pitching affordability. And the climate zealots are getting nutty. Energy reality bats last.”
U.S. Withdrawal from UN Framework on Climate Change Underway
Lindbergh’s Loyalties
11 Mar 2026 1 Comment
in defence economics, economic history, politics - USA, war and peace Tags: Nazi Germany, The Holocaust, World War II
The above photograph is from October 1938 of Lindbergh receiving a Silver Cross from Herman Göring, the then-second-highest Nazi official. Below is part of the timeline of the Holocaust up to that point. 1933January 30Adolf Hitler was appointed Chancellor of Germany March 22Dachau concentration camp opens April 1Boycott of Jewish shops and businesses April 7Laws […]
Lindbergh’s Loyalties
Democratic Leaders Struggle to Explain Their Past Support for Unilateral Presidential War Powers
09 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in defence economics, International law, laws of war, politics - USA, war and peace Tags: regressive left
In Rage and the Republic, I quote former Rep. Jaamal Bowman (D., N.Y.) as capturing the essence of an age…
Democratic Leaders Struggle to Explain Their Past Support for Unilateral Presidential War Powers
Bill Maher’s latest New Rule: “Trump Estrangement Syndrome”
08 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in politics - USA, television, TV shows
Bill Maher’s latest news-and-comedy shtick on “Real Time” deals once again with the flak he got for having dinner with President Trump. Remember? Despite Maher constantly criticizing the President’s policies durin gthe dinner, he also reported that he found Trump affable and friendly. That was enough for liberals to come down on Maher like a…
Bill Maher’s latest New Rule: “Trump Estrangement Syndrome”
The Vietnam War and racial integration
07 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in defence economics, discrimination, economics of love and marriage, politics - USA, war and peace Tags: marriage and divorce, racial discrimination, Vietnam war
The Vietnam draft conscripted hundreds of thousands of young Americans into an integrated military. I combine near-random draft lottery variation with administrative voter data to study the long-run racial integration effects of coerced national service. Black and Native American veterans became more likely to marry white spouses, identify as Republicans, and live in more-integrated neighborhoods.…
The Vietnam War and racial integration
The Nightmare Scenario Leading to a Wealth Tax
07 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, economic growth, economic history, entrepreneurship, fiscal policy, income redistribution, liberalism, macroeconomics, Marxist economics, politics - USA, Public Choice, public economics Tags: taxation and entrepreneurship, taxation and investment, taxation and labour supply
Is it time to pack our belongings and head to Argentina, where Javier Milei is dramatically improving economic policy and cultural attitudes? I’m joking, but also not joking. The reason I’m not joking is that there’s a very depressing scenario for America’s near-term economic outlook. It involves these six potential developments. Thanks in part to […]
The Nightmare Scenario Leading to a Wealth Tax
Population changes helping Republicans
07 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
The latest US population estimates will help the Republicans in the 2032 presidential election, according to this analysis. It suggests blue states will lose 10 electoral votes, swing states gain one and red states gain nine. This will only matter in a very close election such as 2000, but it is interesting that so many…
Population changes helping Republicans
The youth gender gap is because young women have moved left
06 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in politics - New Zealand, politics - USA, Public Choice Tags: regressive left, voter demographics
The tweet above includes this graph: The original tweet has lots of reasoning as to why this is. TLDR is social media. The post The youth gender gap is because young women have moved left first appeared on Kiwiblog.
The youth gender gap is because young women have moved left
Jack Smith’s Secret Orders Targeting Patel and Wiles Should Alarm Us All
04 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in economics of crime, law and economics, politics - USA Tags: 2020 presidential election, 2024 presidential election
Below is my column on Fox.com on the new disclosures of secret orders targeting now FBI Director Kash Patel and…
Jack Smith’s Secret Orders Targeting Patel and Wiles Should Alarm Us All
More Bark Than Bite: Kaine’s War Powers Resolution is an “Imminent” Failure
04 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in defence economics, International law, laws of war, politics - USA, war and peace Tags: regressive left
We now have a glimpse of the War Powers Resolution promised by Sen. Tim Kaine (D., Va.), which is reportedly…
More Bark Than Bite: Kaine’s War Powers Resolution is an “Imminent” Failure
The Clintons and the Politics of Scandal
03 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in economics of crime, law and economics, politics - USA
Below is my column in the Hill on the deposition of former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State…
The Clintons and the Politics of Scandal
One view of Iranian strategy
02 Mar 2026 1 Comment
in defence economics, laws of war, politics - USA, war and peace
Some observations and comments on Trump and Israel’s war on Iran: 1. Tehran is not looking for a ceasefire and has rejected outreach from Trump. The reason is that they believe they committed a mistake by agreeing to the ceasefire in June – it only enabled the US and Israel to restock and remobilize to…
One view of Iranian strategy
Utopia, you are standing in it! 
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