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Where is Josh Shapiro on U.S. Steel?
Originally published at The Philadelphia Inquirer Will Gov. Josh Shapiro finally raise a finger to save U.S. Steel? That’s been the question ever since former President Joe…
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Energy
Paris Agreement Exit Signals Return of American Energy Dominance
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Fairness
The Questions Chavez-DeRemer Must Answer
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Liberty: The Highest Political End
Mark Twain supposedly once quipped that "No man's life, liberty or property are safe while the Legislature is in session." He must have had the Pennsylvania General Assembly in mind.
Commentary
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How to Increase Teacher Pay
Few people will disagree that the best school teachers are often paid less than they deserve. But even fewer people agree when it comes to figuring out what to do…
Commentary
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Taxing the Internet
Thank you, Mr. Chairman and members of the Committee, for the invitation to testify today on legislation concerning the “Streamlined Sales Tax Project.”…
Commentary
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Renounce the “Faith”
Politicians are fond of saying, "Government doesn't create jobs, the private sector does." Yet the machinations of state and federal government--and the news releases that follow--reveal that most politicians truly…
Commentary
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The High Cost of Fiscally Responsible Compassion
For the naysayers of disciplined and effective government spending, the Pennsylvania House Appropriations Committee has published “Republican Stewardship of State Government: 1995-2003.” Complete with a tagline, “Meeting the Challenge with…
Commentary
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Pennsylvania Needs School Board Rent Control
Pennsylvanians are once again being reminded this spring that they never actually own their homes; they only “rent” them from their local school board. As school districts across the commonwealth…
Commentary
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The Fight for Educational Freedom
Matthew J. Brouillette, president of The Commonwealth Foundation, delivered the following remarks at The Heritage Foundation's Resource Bank dinner in Chicago on May 29, 2004, in honor of Virginia Walden-Ford,…
Commentary
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Closing Loopholes to Tighten the Noosehole
Two leading Pennsylvania House Democrats are taking aim at the Commonwealth’s surviving corporate taxpayers. Reps. Mike Veon and David Levdansky say that legal provisions in the tax code—“loopholes” in their…
Commentary
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Set Our Teachers Free!
Remarks of Matthew J. Brouillette, President & CEO, The Commonwealth Foundation I'm Matthew Brouillette, president of The Commonwealth Foundation. Prior to moving into the world of public policy, I…
Commentary
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“OutFORCING”: Pennsylvania’s Real Job Loss Culprit
There’s been a great deal of political talk this election season about greedy “Benedict Arnold” companies sending jobs overseas. Gov. Ed Rendell even announced that the Commonwealth would look unfavorably…
Commentary
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Will the Taxpayers Benefit from Rendell’s “Strategic Sourcing Initiative”?
"Government should be run more like a business." The underlying sentiment of this oft-repeated phrase is that government should be more efficient and effective when spending our tax dollars. Of…
Commentary
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Taxpayers to Subsidize Risks of Venture Capitalists
As the Republican-led Pennsylvania General Assembly considers a “compromise” version of Gov. Ed Rendell’s so-called “economic stimulus” package, The Commonwealth Foundation declared it to be another step backward for the…
Commentary
Read More: Taxpayers to Subsidize Risks of Venture CapitalistsRegulation
A Solution to the Gambling License Giveaway
It's déjà vu all over again. As Governor Rendell continues lobbying the General Assembly to expand gambling, very little attention is paid to the potential giveaway of valuable slot machine…
Commentary
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Pennsylvania’s Great Rail Disasters
Every Pennsylvanian agrees that traffic congestion and air pollution are hardly good or desirable things for our cities. But there is much less agreement on what strategies should be used…
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Racial Bias in Pennsylvania Special Education
If you are an African-American or Hispanic male in a predominantly White public school in Pennsylvania, there's a good chance you have been labeled as "Learning Disabled." That is the…
Commentary
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Bail on These Bonds
If Pennsylvania is the next state to tax, borrow or spend its way to prosperity, it will also be the first. The historical and economic reality is that government is…
Commentary
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The Susquehanna Sailors: Taking the Liberty to Live it up on your Property
Ronald Reagan is credited for having once said: "Some people say that the government spends money like a bunch of drunken sailors. That isn't fair. At least the drunken sailors…
Commentary
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Diagnosis Litigation
Despite a number of obstacles limiting access to affordable insurance, America’s healthcare system remains the envy of the world. But as the current medical malpractice insurance epidemic raging across the…
Commentary
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Quantity Counts 2004
What do you do when you want more money and you already boast the 3rd highest per-pupil revenue in the nation and the highest teacher salaries in the country, when…
Commentary
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Hang Up on the Cell Phone Tax!
Pennsylvania policymakers frequently talk about building and nurturing a hightech economy in the Commonwealth—yet the latest effort to raise taxes on the wireless telephone industry reveals that many of them…
Commentary
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“We refuse to learn from history, and we’re determined to repeat it!”
For the second time in a little more than a decade, Pennsylvania politicians are poised to make sure that the Commonwealth misses out on a developing economic boom by passing…
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