The 2011 Index of Economic Freedom is out, and the news is not good. For the second year in a row, America became less economically free. The U.S. is now just the ninth-freest economy in the world. The decline in the U.S. ranking was driven by skyrocketing government spending, new regulatory uncertainty associated with Obamacare, and government intervention in housing and financial markets. Economic freedom matters for many reasons. It is the way societies create wealth: government is necessary, but it provides only the framework within which autonomy can flourish. …
While it’s being reported that every state (except Florida) had snow on the ground this week, 46 states are digging out of another kind of mess — a combined deficit of at least $127 billion. Democratic and Republican state leaders alike are grappling with structural budget deficits, many of whom are proposing budget cuts to tackle the problem. But then there’s Illinois. President Barack Obama’s home state is beleaguered by a $15 billion budget deficit that is said to be the worst in the nation. And apparently the last thing …
On March 16, 2006, when our national debt stood at $8.27 trillion, a young Senator from Illinois announced his intention to vote against raising our nation’s debt ceiling to $9 trillion, explaining: The fact that we are here today to debate raising America’s debt limit is a sign of leadership failure. Leadership means that “the buck stops here.” Instead, Washington is shifting the burden of bad choices today onto the backs of our children and grandchildren. America has a debt problem and a failure of leadership. Americans deserve better. I …
Our new video asks, “Is the American Dream dead?” With the release of the 2011 Index of Economic Freedom, one element of the report should be inescapable to American readers: out-of-control spending is a serious threat to our country’s prosperity. The enormity of the problem should not be underestimated—last year, the Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman even called our frighteningly high debt the “most significant threat to our national security“. For the second year in a row, the United States remained mired in the “mostly free” category and while economic …
This morning, The Heritage Foundation and The Wall Street Journal released the 2011 Index of Economic Freedom, and while the news is good for many countries, it is depressing for the United States. All told, 117 countries, mainly developing and emerging market economies, improved their Economic Freedom Index score. Meanwhile the U.S. dropped to 9th place, remaining “mostly free,” weighed down by the burden of President Obama’s spending spree. Of course, we should all celebrate the improving lot of many impoverished people across the globe. The data in this year’s …
Michael Barone has an interesting piece today highlighting a recent article by George Mason University economist Tyler Cowen in The American Interest that explains how rising U.S. living standards across the board have “spread the wealth” far more efficiently than any statist program the Obama Administration can dream up. Cowen demonstrates how the greatly improved access that ordinary Americans have gained in the past 50 years to better clothing, food, consumer electronics, and medical care has reduced “the inequality of personal well-being.” He makes his case by reviewing the dropping …
Although Belize has made some progress on its Index of Economic Freedom score in the past few years, recent actions by the government of Prime Minister Dean Barrow and the supermajority his United Democratic Party enjoys in Parliament may have put that progress at risk. Belize is increasingly wracked by violent crime, while its high debt burden is a strain on public finance. The illegal drug trade and money laundering are entrenched problems. The Barrow government took office in February 2008 and has close relations with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, …
Corruption is again dominating the news in India. Long-standing issues, such as broad attempts to avoid taxes, have simmered back to the surface and been joined by new accusations against the wealthy, major companies, and the government. Scandals have crossed finance, property, and telecom. Crimes have been committed and the guilty should face justice. The biggest culprit, however, faces no punishment and, indeed, is looking to further recent gains. That culprit is the Indian state. Earlier this year, criticism began to be leveled in India at the underground or “black” …
$154 billion. That is the amount of taxpayer money that will be needed to bail out Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac according to a new “stress test” performed by the Federal Housing Finance Agency. And that is the good news. If the economy dips into a second recession and foreclosures rise, the Fannie and Freddie bailout could nearly double in size. The agency, which oversees Fannie and Freddie, released the numbers “to inform public debate about the future of the two companies” ahead of expected Obama administration proposals slated for …
A featured op-ed in The Wall Street Journal last week documented the recent, surprising successes of Bangladesh. Henry Kissinger dubbed it a “basket-case” at its inception. It has little economic freedom, and many in the international community saw little hope for it, but it has made some large achievements in recent years. The economy is on an upward spiral, birth rates are down, and commendable progress has been made in tackling the influence of Islamist extremism in a Muslim majority country. The current government has helped with these upswings, but …
