Every family, business owner, and taxpayer in Pennsylvania should be able to increase their financial security without undue interference from our state government. Free-market policies that limit taxes, allow entrepreneurs to innovate and create jobs, and offer stability to families will put our state on track to become a national leader. Policies that enact spending limits, cut taxes, and reduce regulations will help Pennsylvania avoid debt and restore sound fiscal planning that will benefit citizens in the years to come.

Public Union Democracy

Texas v. Ohio

  • Nathan Benefield
  • March 3, 2008

Wall Street Journal article contrasts the economic fortunes between Texas (good) and Ohio (bad), and explores some of the reasons behind this – namely taxes (Texas=low, Ohio=high and increasing)…

Media

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Taxes & Economy

NAFTA, Foreign Trade, and jobs

  • Nathan Benefield
  • March 3, 2008

Cato’s Dan Griswold writes that “Ohio Needs More Foreign Trade” as Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama denounce NAFTA in Ohio: Ohio workers would pay a heavy price for…

Media

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Regulation

Union wants pension backing for roads

  • Nathan Benefield
  • March 3, 2008

Financial Times article on public sector unions pushing for public pension funds to invest in roads and other infrastructure. Of course, as noted, many public pension funds (the California…

Media

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Taxes & Economy

An Upside for the Middle Class

  • Nathan Benefield
  • February 29, 2008

Interesting Washington Post article on the middle class: Items once considered luxuries — dishwashers, central air conditioning, video cameras — are now common. The average size of new…

Media

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Regulation

How to Shrink an Economy

  • Nathan Benefield
  • February 29, 2008

Penn State Altoona econ professor John McGinnis writes on how Pennsylvania’s “economic development” spending shrinks our economy – first by taxing to pay for this corporate welfare, then by…

Media

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State Budget

PA Budget Historical Numbers

  • Nathan Benefield
  • February 29, 2008

I’ve received a couple of requests for historics Pennsylvania state budget numbers, so I thought I’d post the data here. The figures represent actual final spending from 1970-2007, while…

Media

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Taxes & Economy

Daylight Saving Wastes Energy

  • Nathan Benefield
  • February 28, 2008

A new study show that daylight savings time result in higher energy use, reports the Wall Street Journal, examing the effect of Indiana’s recent move to DST. Daylight Savings…

Media

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Taxes & Economy

Wages Are a Price, Too

  • Nathan Benefield
  • February 27, 2008

A good chart of wages vs. inflation on the CARPE DIEM blog, along with a criticism of today’s Wall Street Journal article on inflation (and a humorous transposition…

Media

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Taxes & Economy

Foreigners Create Jobs

  • Matthew Brouillette
  • February 27, 2008

With transportation funding from last year's Act 44 looking increasingly unlikely to materialize, Gov. Rendell is wisely continuing to push for a private-sector lease of the Pennsylvania Turnpike as part…

Commentary

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Taxes & Economy

Bio-Foolish Behavior

  • Nathan Benefield
  • February 26, 2008

IBD Editorial on the lack of common sense in pushing for additional bio-fuel mandates and taxpayer subsidy: In 2005, America used 15% of its corn crop to replace…

Media

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Health Care

Obama v. McCain on Health Care

  • Nathan Benefield
  • February 25, 2008

Cato Daily Podcast with Michael Tanner on the differences between McCain and Obama – and the constrast of market-based reform vs. expansion of government – on health care.

Media

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Taxes & Economy

The Laffer Curve, Part II

  • Nathan Benefield
  • February 25, 2008

Second part in the video series on the Laffer Curve – this video looks at real examples of how tax cuts result in economic and revenue growth.

Media

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Health Care

RendellCare: What Would Jesus Do?

  • Nathan Benefield
  • February 24, 2008

Remember the passage in the Bible where Jesus called upon the Roman Empire to provide universal, government-run health insurance? What! There’s no such passage? Perhaps someone should point that…

Commentary

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Health Care

Semonizing on RendellCare

  • Nathan Benefield
  • February 24, 2008

Morning Call article and Post-Gazette piece on the planned “CAP Sunday” and campaign to use sermons to promote RendellCare. (HT: GrassrootsPA) I’ve written on Jesus and…

Media

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Regulation

Corporate Welfare responsible for 125% of new jobs

  • Nathan Benefield
  • February 21, 2008

A new study and press conference today by the Pennsylvania Economic Development Association (PEDA) takes credit for helping to “create” 186,000 jobs in PA from 2003 through…

Media

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Taxes & Economy

The Running Total Of Our Taxes

  • Nathan Benefield
  • February 21, 2008

One blog I have been following is Taxation With Representation, in which “Danny” keeps a running total of the total taxes his family has paid – income, Social Security,…

Media

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Health Care

Wal-Mart can be good for your health

  • Nathan Benefield
  • February 21, 2008

Salon.com article on the growth of retail clinics in providing low-cost health care services – and the opposition from entrenched special interests.

Media

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State Budget

CAGW Names Rep. John Murtha Porker of the Year

  • Nathan Benefield
  • February 20, 2008

Pennsylvania’s own Congresman John Murtha was named Porker of the Year by Citizens Against Government Waste: In fiscal year 2008, he brought home 72 pork projects worth $149.2…

Media

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Taxes & Economy

The ACLU gets it right for once

  • Nathan Benefield
  • February 20, 2008

Tony Phyrillas on the ACLU’s defense of property owners’ right to put campaign signs in their yard in South Park (not that South Park).

Media

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Regulation

Legislators plan hearings on privatizing liquor stores

  • Nathan Benefield
  • February 20, 2008

Post-Gazette on the push for privatization of state-run liquor stores. More on State Store privatization: “Public Benefits of Private Liquor” news release and testimony from Reason Foundation…

Media

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Government Accountability

Mickey Goes to Washington

  • Nathan Benefield
  • February 19, 2008

Washington Post article on Walt Disney and other lobbyists pushing for taxpayer subsidies for tourism. If you don’t want to know how the sausage is made, don’t read this…

Media

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