This Election Has Been Defined by Presidential Policy Pandering
From taxes to special loans to price gouging, the Trump and Harris campaigns have engaged in a race to see who can pander hardest.
Tax Reform
Don't Expect a Return to the Trump Economy
If the former president wins the 2024 race, the circumstances he would inherit are far more challenging, and several of his policy ideas are destructive.
Instead of Vote-Buying Tax Promises, Let's Have Real Plans for Tax Relief
Lower taxes are better taxes, but they should be part of well-considered plans.
Americans' Support for Tariffs Plummets When They See Prices Rise
A new poll challenges the protectionist narrative currently dominating both sides of the political aisle.
Trump and Harris Are Just Making It Up as They Go
Both are embracing a total policy nihilism and turning the election into a cynical pander-off.
Here's How To Pay for Trump's Tax Cuts
There seems to be general bipartisan agreement on keeping a majority of the cuts, which are set to expire. They can be financed by cleaning out the tax code of unfair breaks.
Biden and Trump Hope to Tip the Election Scales With Working-Class Proposals
Competing visions on tipping policies highlight the differences in the candidates’ approaches to winning over working-class voters—but neither will provide much benefit.
At the Presidential Debate, Biden Says He 'Beat Medicare'
Biden's incoherence and Trump's comparatively cogent lies demonstrate just how poorly the two-party system serves supporters of small government.
Brace for Big Tax Hikes in 2026 Unless Congress Acts
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act expires at the end of 2025, with a high price tag for most Americans.
Byzantine Tax Laws Threaten To Make Us All Tax Cheats
The Department of Justice is suing several tax preparers for filing fraudulent returns, but even honest filers risk running afoul of tax laws.
Is a Land Value Tax the Solution to Detroit's Messed Up Property Tax System?
Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan argues that shifting taxes from homes to the land they sit on will encourage development and cut taxes for most homeowners. Local property tax activists aren't convinced.
The Debt Ceiling Deal Does Not Go Nearly Far Enough
Projections of huge savings are making the rounds. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Simplify the Tax Code Instead of Creating an IRS Rival to TurboTax
Americans collectively spend billions of hours each year preparing their taxes. Rather than adding a government-run website into the mix, politicians should just simplify the tax code.
Auditors Asked the IRS To Figure Out Why So Many Taxpayers Make Mistakes. The IRS Said 'No.'
Maybe taxpayers would make fewer mistakes if the federal tax code weren't so hopelessly complex.
My Son Did His Taxes for the First Time. Rage Ensued.
Nothing focuses the mind quite so intently on the sheer stupidity of government as doing your taxes.
House Republicans Want a Vote On the FairTax. Is It Worth Supporting?
The status quo is certainly worth challenging.
Liz Truss Is Flailing, Politically and Economically
The British Conservative Party can’t figure out what it wants.
Fact-Checking Industry Continues Providing Cover for White House's Unbelievable IRS Claims
"Most" new IRS hires, claims a gullible FactCheck.org, "will provide customer services."
When a Tax Break Is Actually a Tax Penalty
The curious case of the tax exclusion for employer-sponsored health insurance.
Gwyneth Paltrow's Gemstone-Encrusted Alpaca Wool Diaper Is…a Tax Protest?
"If treating diapers like a luxury makes you mad, so should taxing them like a luxury," said Paltrow.
Elizabeth Warren's Wealth Tax Would Hurt More Than Just the 'Tippy Top'
Wealth tax proponents claim only super rich people would be affected. But to raise the revenue Warren, Sanders, and Biden want, they'd have to tax the "working rich"—doctors, lawyers, and other hardworking high earners.
Elizabeth Warren Told Elon Musk To 'Actually Pay Taxes' and 'Stop Freeloading Off Everyone Else'
Musk responded that he will pay more in taxes this year than any other American in history.
Elizabeth Warren Wants the IRS To Create Its Own TurboTax. What Could Go Wrong?
A simplified tax code is the answer, not giving the IRS more funding.
Enjoy Tax Day 2021. They Just Get Worse From Here.
Tax hikes and growing debt guarantee shared pain in a hobbled economy.
Bipartisan 'Bucket of Garbage' Budget Bill Contains $50 Billion in Special Interest Tax Breaks
On their own, some of those tax breaks might be defensible. Dumping them into a must-pass budget bill is not.
Eat The Rich? House Democrats Plan To Pass Huge Tax Break for Wealthy Homeowners.
The party that's calling for huge tax increases on the wealthy is about to hand wealthier Americans a big tax break that will add to the federal budget.
Trump's One-Sided War Against New York's Political Elite
Bill de Blasio's coming humiliation is just the latest evidence of the outer-borough president's revenge on Manhattan.
Does Tucker Carlson Get Anything Right About Libertarians?: Podcast
What conservatives against "market fundamentalism" can tell you about libertarians without power
America's Economic Health Has Improved
The U.S. rose four places in the International Tax Competitiveness Index, and this just the latest bit of good news.
Will a Lame-Duck Congress Once Again Overextend Itself?
It's time for a new approach on taxes.
The Republican Tax Cuts Were a Political Failure. What Does That Mean for a Party That Agrees on Little Else?
The GOP needs a new theory of government.
Voters in Florida, North Carolina Just Made It Much Harder to Pass Future Tax Hikes
North Carolina capped income tax rates at 7 percent, while Florida will now require a supermajority to increase taxes or fees.
Extending the Electric Vehicle Tax Credit Undermines Tax Reform
Real reform requires simplifying the tax code.
Here's What Congress Was Doing While You Were Watching the Kavanaugh Circus
The passage of tax reform 2.0 blows a huge hole in the budget, and a much-touted opioid bill might just make the crisis worse.
Trump's Tariffs Will Cost More Than Obamacare's Taxes
If Trump presses ahead with plans to tax all Chinese imports, the added costs would cancel out the economic benefits of last year's corporate tax cut.
GOP's 'Tax Reform 2.0' Will Make It Harder to Balance the Budget
Plan would extend last year's tax cuts past 2025, but spending cuts are still missing.
Congressman Launches His Yacht in the Swamp
Rep. Vern Buchanan bought a yacht with a giant loan from a foreign bank that lobbied heavily in favor of tax reform.
Massachusetts Mayor Claims Sam Adams Is Profiting Off Trump's 'White Nationalist Agenda'
Taking a tax break now amounts to taking a side.
House Republicans Want Permanent Tax Cuts They Can't Pay For
GOP legislators released their "Tax Reform 2.0" proposal, which aims to make last year's tax cuts permanent, adding trillions to the $21 trillion debt.
Republicans Want a Tax Break For Gym Memberships. That's a Terrible Idea.
A new GOP bill would benefit gyms and gym goers, but few others.
Four Blue States Scream 'Federalism' and Sue to Stop Changes in Federal Tax Deductions
New York gets salty over new limits because now the rich will know they're being soaked.
Is Tax Reform Already Working?
Companies are paying bonuses, raising wages, and committing to major new investments. Is this a sign of the tax law's success-or just clever corporate PR?
CBO to Estimate That Repealing Obamacare's Individual Mandate Will Have a Smaller Effect on Health Insurance Coverage
New report suggests the Republican tax bill will have a smaller coverage effect, but cause an even bigger increase in the deficit.
Prepaid Property Tax Perplexity Highlights the Tax Code's Confounding Complexity
Even the experts do not know what the law requires.
Another Winner From Tax Reform: State Governments
Taxpayers could end up sending hundreds of millions of dollars more to state treasuries as a result of slashing federal deductions and exemptions.
Tax Reform Was Easy, Spending Cuts Are Un-possible
President Trump and the GOP leadership has already reneged on promises to tackle entitlements.
