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Las Vegas High Speed Rail Project Shows Private Sector Can Get Job Done on High Speed Rail

As California’s bullet train continues to get hung up by cost projections gone wild, construction delays, postponed opening dates, and legal troubles, a high-speed rail line between Los Angeles and Las Vegas could be carrying passengers just four years from now. The difference? One is a government project, the other ...
Blog

Who Gets The Real Credit for the Economy?

This summer, I had the opportunity to interview Andy Puzder on PRI’s “Next Round” podcast.  In chatting with him about his new book Capitalist Comeback, the former Trump nominee for Secretary of Labor and I were both astounded at the speed of the economic turnaround after Donald Trump was elected. ...
Blog

Union Push for Anaheim “Living Wage” Already Hurting Workers at Happiest Place on Earth

Last week, I celebrated my 42nd birthday in style – taking a few days off following our Baroness Thatcher Gala to enjoy some of the sites of Southern California. I spent a lovely afternoon at Downtown Disney, which is an entertainment district right in between Disneyland and Disney’s California Adventure.  ...
Business & Economics

The Opportunity Created by California’s Overly-Generous Public Pensions

Americans are facing two very different pension outlooks. Most private sector workers contribute to 401(k) plans (which are often matched by employers), and rely on investments, savings, and Social Security for their retirement. But, their savings is inadequate. According to a 2018 survey by Northwestern Mutual, 33 percent of Baby Boomers ...
Blog

Rent Control – Temporary or Not – Won’t Bring Down Sacramento’s Housing Costs

Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg is trying to have his cake and eat it too. He announced in June that he opposed a local ballot measure being pushed by labor unions and activist groups to impose new rent control restrictions in Sacramento. That measure, according to the Sacramento Bee, would “cap ...
Business & Economics

CAFE Standards versus Public Opinion

Calls for stricter environmental mandates contradict the broad public consensus on global warming. According to a 2018 report by the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication, seven out of ten Americans believe global warming is happening and six out of ten say they are at least “somewhat worried”. Other polls differ ...
Blog

California Supreme Court Ruling Takes Its First Scalp

It didn’t take long for a California Supreme Court decision to start claiming victims. Bottle & Barlow, a “get loose stay sharp” joint on trendy R Street in Sacramento, where a gentleman can sip whisky and also be stylishly shorn, has lost its entire staff of freelance barbers because seven ...
Blog

The Wayfair decision and California

I used to tell my friends and colleagues to be sure to check out the Lord & Taylor website before they buy an outfit. Lord & Taylor doesn’t have operations in California, so the same Calvin Klein dress would be tax-free at Lord & Taylor, but at the Macy’s website ...
Business & Economics

Trump vs. Obama on the Economy. Read Wayne Winegarden’s Analysis in The Hill

Trump, Obama spar over economy. Who’s right? By Niv Elis By many metrics, the economy is booming, and both President Trump and former President Obama want you to know that they are the one to thank. Under Trump, the stock market hit new highs, the unemployment rate dropped to lows not seen ...
Blog

Why Skills Based Economics Should Be Focus of Free-Market Advocates

In this and succeeding columns, I intend to develop a new paradigm for thinking about economic progress for America in the 21st century. I believe that supporters of free markets are faced with both extraordinary opportunities and great cause for concern in the 21st century. The opportunities for our nation ...
Blog

Las Vegas High Speed Rail Project Shows Private Sector Can Get Job Done on High Speed Rail

As California’s bullet train continues to get hung up by cost projections gone wild, construction delays, postponed opening dates, and legal troubles, a high-speed rail line between Los Angeles and Las Vegas could be carrying passengers just four years from now. The difference? One is a government project, the other ...
Blog

Who Gets The Real Credit for the Economy?

This summer, I had the opportunity to interview Andy Puzder on PRI’s “Next Round” podcast.  In chatting with him about his new book Capitalist Comeback, the former Trump nominee for Secretary of Labor and I were both astounded at the speed of the economic turnaround after Donald Trump was elected. ...
Blog

Union Push for Anaheim “Living Wage” Already Hurting Workers at Happiest Place on Earth

Last week, I celebrated my 42nd birthday in style – taking a few days off following our Baroness Thatcher Gala to enjoy some of the sites of Southern California. I spent a lovely afternoon at Downtown Disney, which is an entertainment district right in between Disneyland and Disney’s California Adventure.  ...
Business & Economics

The Opportunity Created by California’s Overly-Generous Public Pensions

Americans are facing two very different pension outlooks. Most private sector workers contribute to 401(k) plans (which are often matched by employers), and rely on investments, savings, and Social Security for their retirement. But, their savings is inadequate. According to a 2018 survey by Northwestern Mutual, 33 percent of Baby Boomers ...
Blog

Rent Control – Temporary or Not – Won’t Bring Down Sacramento’s Housing Costs

Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg is trying to have his cake and eat it too. He announced in June that he opposed a local ballot measure being pushed by labor unions and activist groups to impose new rent control restrictions in Sacramento. That measure, according to the Sacramento Bee, would “cap ...
Business & Economics

CAFE Standards versus Public Opinion

Calls for stricter environmental mandates contradict the broad public consensus on global warming. According to a 2018 report by the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication, seven out of ten Americans believe global warming is happening and six out of ten say they are at least “somewhat worried”. Other polls differ ...
Blog

California Supreme Court Ruling Takes Its First Scalp

It didn’t take long for a California Supreme Court decision to start claiming victims. Bottle & Barlow, a “get loose stay sharp” joint on trendy R Street in Sacramento, where a gentleman can sip whisky and also be stylishly shorn, has lost its entire staff of freelance barbers because seven ...
Blog

The Wayfair decision and California

I used to tell my friends and colleagues to be sure to check out the Lord & Taylor website before they buy an outfit. Lord & Taylor doesn’t have operations in California, so the same Calvin Klein dress would be tax-free at Lord & Taylor, but at the Macy’s website ...
Business & Economics

Trump vs. Obama on the Economy. Read Wayne Winegarden’s Analysis in The Hill

Trump, Obama spar over economy. Who’s right? By Niv Elis By many metrics, the economy is booming, and both President Trump and former President Obama want you to know that they are the one to thank. Under Trump, the stock market hit new highs, the unemployment rate dropped to lows not seen ...
Blog

Why Skills Based Economics Should Be Focus of Free-Market Advocates

In this and succeeding columns, I intend to develop a new paradigm for thinking about economic progress for America in the 21st century. I believe that supporters of free markets are faced with both extraordinary opportunities and great cause for concern in the 21st century. The opportunities for our nation ...
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