Media

State Budget

Earmark abusers jump on earmark reform wagon

• Nathan Benefield
• March 11, 2008

The Club for Growth notes that both Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton have signed on to DeMint-McCain earmark moratorium. While this will likely force passage of the bill,…

Media

Health Care

Pennsylvania proposes to cheat Medicaid

• Nathan Benefield
• March 10, 2008

Michael Cannon writes that the Rendell administration’s plan to tax Philly and Pittsburgh hospitals, but give them higher reimbursements from Medicaid is a great plan … for Pennsylvania.

Media

Taxes & Economy

A Philly Tax Cutter?

• Nathan Benefield
• March 10, 2008

City Journal sounding on what Mayor Nutter needs to do to turn the Philadelphia economy around. The results of the city’s hostility toward business are evident. While the…

Media

State Budget

Central PA Congressman and businesses giving up earmarks

• Nathan Benefield
• March 10, 2008

Central Penn Business Journal on the Congressman Pitts and Platts joining those taking a moratorium on earmarks and the response of most business leaders – except the beneficiaries of…

Media

Regulation

How government makes things worse

• Nathan Benefield
• March 10, 2008

Boston Globe piece by Jeff Jacoby covers the “Law of Unintended Consequences” of government intervention. Jacoby takes on government mandates and subsidies for ethanol: But now comes word…

Media

Taxes & Economy

Are We Talking Ourselves Into Recession?

• Nathan Benefield
• March 10, 2008

BusinessWeek article on whether the media’s obsession with bad economic news may be driving low consumer confidence and turning a “slowdown” into a recession. Case in point: I recently…

Media

Education

Home-Schooling Under Attack

• Nathan Benefield
• March 7, 2008

Here is some commentary on the recent California court ruling that would require parents homeschooling their children to have full teaching credentials/certification. Acton Institute PowerBlog Cato-At-Liberty…

Media

State Budget

Earmark Nation

• Nathan Benefield
• March 7, 2008

Wall Street Journal on the political value of taking a hard line opposing earmarks, compared with the value of pork projects. Unorthodox as he’s been on some conservative…

Media

Taxes & Economy

Pa. legislative Democrats’ I-80 report worthless

• Nathan Benefield
• March 6, 2008

Towanda Daily Review editorial on the “study” commissioned by House Democrats on a Turnpike lease. One addition to my previous notes on the “study”: To show…

Media

Taxes & Economy

Median U.S. Gross Income: $61,500

• Nathan Benefield
• March 6, 2008

TaxProf Blog has the latest US Median Income, along with a couple of nifty charts on median income growth (in both nominal and real terms) and the average income…

Media

Government Accountability

PSU Study: Whites still think Blacks are apes

• Nathan Benefield
• March 5, 2008

In addition to commenting on policy issues, I also like to comment on some of very weird, esoteric studies conducted by academic researchers. The most recent is this study…

Media

State Budget

Campbell on Earmark Moratorium

• Nathan Benefield
• March 5, 2008

Video of John Campbell on earmarks. I especially like him bringing up the “monuments to me” – i.e. earmarks by legislators for projects named after themselves – noting “I hope…

Media

Government Accountability

Campaign-Finance Breakdown

• Nathan Benefield
• March 5, 2008

John Lott and Bradley Smith in the Wall Street Journal on taxpayer-financing of presidential elections: Since 1976, taxpayers have shelled out about $3 billion in current dollars to…

Media

Government Accountability

Influence-Peddling

• Nathan Benefield
• March 5, 2008

John Stossel on Townhall.com on the rhetoric against “special interests” and “corporate lobbyists” in Washington (also applicable to Harrisburg): None of the reforms gets near root of the…

Media

Taxes & Economy

Turnpike Comission seeks private bidders to finish roads

• Nathan Benefield
• March 5, 2008

With no sense of irony, the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission is adverstising for for “expressions of interest” from private firms interested in finishing and managining the Mon-Fayette Expressway and Findlay…

Media

Study: Speculation and Predetermined Conclusions

• March 4, 2008

House Democrats waste taxpayer money on useless report  HARRISBURG, PA — The Commonwealth Foundation responded to a study released today by the House Democrats on the potential lease…

Press Release

Taxes & Economy

Free analysis of costly Turnpike study

• Nathan Benefield
• March 4, 2008

Toll Roads News offers some comments on the $75,000 taxpayer-funded “study” on a Turnpike lease. The Caucus report is in its nature hypothetical. It is based on…

Media

Taxes & Economy

Did the PA min. wage increase cost jobs?

• Nathan Benefield
• March 4, 2008

The PA Department of Labor and Industry released their report on the state minimum wage increase. As this Post-Gazette story indicated, the report doesn’t attempt to address what…

Media

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

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

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