From The WSJ, David Malpass suggests Greece’s departure from the euro will be a benefit primarily for currency traders.
In Forbes, Nathan Lewis argues the dollar/gold price should be set at $1600.
At RCM, John Tamny blames Eliot Spitzer’s harassment of tech investors for Facebook’s IPO difficulties. On The Kudlow Report, James Pethokoukis debates the deficit:
In The WSJ, Paul Rubin explains to the President that profits direct markets to better serve consumers.
From UVA’s Miller Center, Brian Domitrovic responds to Paul Krugman’s defense of the economic recovery.
Zerohedge highlights a James Grant interview on the Fed and the stock market. At NRO, Larry Kudlow argues Mitt Romney needs to widen his lead with the investor class. On The Kudlow Report, US Rep. Jeb Henserling (TX) debates tax policy:
TGSN recounts the history of William Jennings Bryan’s Cross of Gold. In The WSJ, Arthur Brooks suggests that generous social welfare programs demoralize workers.
From First Trust, Brian Wesbury predicts resurgent socialism in Europe will be short-lived.
Zerohedge features David Stockman discussing the Fed, debt and markets.
At Forbes, Jerry Bowyer explains how the economy is supposed to work.
In The Weekly Standard, Jeff Bell argues the President’s embrace of gay marriage will make it harder for him to win key swing states. At The American, James Pethokoukis applauds Arthur Brooks’ new book, The Road to Freedom. From Alhambra Partners, John Chapman analyzes Facebook’s economic impact.
The NY Sunopposes Keynesian Paul Krugman’s call for increased inflation.
At Forbes, Ralph Benko repudiates Occupy Wall Street’s embrace of class warfare socialism. On Bloomberg TV, US Rep. Ron Paul debates Krugman:
In Forbes, John Tamny rues efforts to eliminate expensive healthcare. On his blog, Scott Grannis suggests slow growth is due to government spending offsetting productive investment. At City Journal, Herbert London reviews Jeff Bell’s The Case for Polarized Politics. The Economistexplains that global current account imbalances are largely due to oil exports. Free Market America goes viral with its environmental critique, “If I Wanted America to Fail”:
In The WSJ, Mary O’Grady reports on rising leftwing populism in Chile.
From First Trust, Brian Wesbury rebuts market bears.
On Forbes, Louis Woodhill assesses the economic plan of Senate candidate and “Great Conservative Hope” Ted Cruz (TX). From Atlas Foundation, Judy Shelton discusses sound money, Bretton Woods, her idea for Treasury Trust Bonds, and Robert Mundell's euro:
In The WSJ, Joseph Sternberg predicts rare-earth elements will be cheap and plentiful in future. From Bloomberg, Amity Shlaes doubts the Fed’s idea of controlled, modest inflation.
TGSN features CPAC video of John Mueller, Jeffrey Bell and James Grant discussing the gold standard:
On NPR, supply-sider Jeff Bell highlights the importance of social issues to key segments of the electorate.
The WSJsuggests Mitt Romney won in Michigan by focusing on the economy.
In The WSJ, Larry Lindsey rebuts Tim Geithner’s claim that the wealthy should pay more taxes for the privilege of living in America:
If you go further back to the pre-Reagan days, when the top tax rate was 70%, the story becomes even more dramatic. Under the four presidents of that era, the income share of the top 5% was 16.8% and their share of the income tax was 36%. In other words, the share of income received by the top 5% has risen 28% and their share of income taxes has risen 64%.
Stated differently, based on the data provided by the Census Bureau and the Internal Revenue Service, the relative tax burden of the top 5% of American earners compared with the remaining 95% has grown from roughly three-to-one prior to 1980 to almost six-to-one today.
At Forbes, Brian Domitrovic notes the half-heartedness of Tim Geithner’s corporate tax reform plan. In Congress, US Rep. Ron Paul (TX) grills Ben Bernanke on the true inflation rate:
From Alhambra Partners, Joe Calhoun sees inflation undermining the recovery. At The American, James Pethokoukis introduces the Krugman Curve to compete with the Laffer Curve. On Zero Hedge, Tyler Durden confirms Iran’s move to accept gold in place of dollars for oil. The Huffington Post reports the poor struggling with rising food prices. At RCP, Debra Saunders notes Newt Gingrich’s low gas price advocacy. On TGSN, Ralph Benko recounts creation of the First Bank of the US. At Grant’s Interest Rate Observer, James Grant suggests the price of gold for convertibility should be $2,500 (h/t: TGSN). On The Kudlow Report, former Fed Governor Kevin Warsh critiques Fed policy:
From The American, James Pethokoukis defends the Reagan economic miracle. In US News, Jeff Bell advocates social conservatism. At Forbes, Steve Forbes predicts war with Iran.
From NRO, Larry Kudlow applauds Mitt Romney for using supply-side language in his new tax plan rollout.
In The WSJ, Stephen Moore reports Newt Gingrich will use dynamic scoring to assess his tax plan. On NPR, Ways & Means Chairman Dave Camp (MN) critiques the President’s corporate tax proposal. At Forbes, Peter Ferrara argues the President’s budget will yield little other than more debt. On the Kudlow Report, Steve Moore debates the Romney tax plan:
The WSJexplains the falling dollar’s impact on oil prices. On International Liberty, Dan Mitchell highlights a video critiquing the Federal Reserve.
From Forbes, Nathan Lewis defends capitalism’s moral virtue. The Economisthighlights the burden of regulation on the American economy. The WSJ notes the higher British top tax rate is producing fewer revenues than predicted. On Kudlow, US Rep. Ron Paul (TX) discusses his economic plan:
In The NY Post, Jeff Bell argues for social conservatism. On his blog, Donald Marron praises Bruce Bartlett’s tax reform book. At Fiscal Times, Bartlett contends that neither Obama nor Romney adequately reform the tax code.
Editor's note: Spotty coverage last week and this due to personal travel. Will be back on track later this week. --------------------
From Creators syndicate, Alan Reynolds critiques the President’s budget proposal.
At Forbes, Peter Ferrara suggests the President’s budget will damage the economy. In The WSJ, Holman Jenkins advises Mitt Romney to take up the President’s challenge on the taxes paid by the wealthy. The WSJprofiles Jeff Bell who argues social issues are vital to the conservative coalition. On The Kudlow Report, former US Rep. Vin Weber (MN) discusses the GOP’s messaging problem:
On NRO, Larry Kudlow notes Ways & Means Chairman Dave Camp’s going after Treasury Sec. Tim Geithner on tax policy. In Reason, Tim Cavanaugh counters Geithner’s tax increase advocacy. At The American, Aparna Mathur notes the effect of higher taxes on capital flows. From American Thinker, Ralph Benko advocates a gold commission. In Forbes, Bill Bonner critiquesThe NYT’s coverage of a possible return to gold-linked money. At Monetary Choice, Dave Doctor rebuts Keynesian Dean Baker’s defense of the Federal Reserve. The NY Sunsuggests Sarah Palin would be a better World Bank president than Hillary Clinton. From Bloomberg, Gregory DL Morris recounts the history of the Federal Reserve’s founding. From last month’s Texas Public Policy Foundation conclave, Art Laffer debates Keynesian Jared Bernstein:
At The American, James Pethokoukis outlines arguments for the President’s opponents even if the economy is recovering. In The WSJ, Michael Boskin suggests government is a poor investor. USA Todaylinks the recession to slow population growth from births and immigration.
From Forbes, historian Brian Domitrovic notes Newt Gingrich’s role in advancing supply-side economics.
At The Huffington Post, Alan Reynolds denies Gingrich’s role in supply-side’s founding. In The NY Sun, Ira Stoll criticizes Gingrich for bashing investment banks and private equity firms. National Journalquotes Jeff Bell on the GOP presidential primary’s emerging establishment vs. conservative grassroots theme. On The Kudlow Report, Larry Kudlow interviews US Rep. Ron Paul on the Fed, the dollar and gold:
In The WSJ, James Freeman notes that Warren Buffett likely would avoid the Buffett Rule. On Forbes, John Tamny links global warming pessimism to belief in America’s inevitable decline. IBDexamines the Obama recovery’s abnormally slow pace. In The Washington Post, James Q. Wilson suggests income inequality is related to social factors such as education level and family structure. On Kudlow, David Goldman sounds moderately optimistic about US growth:
The WSJhighlights a World Bank report relating Europe’s slow growth to demographics and big government. From Cato, David Boaz refutes the claim that China caused the 2008 financial crisis.
Newt Gingrich’s campaign names Lew Lehrman and James Grant to its Gold Commission.
From Newt.org, Lehrman and Grant accept Gingrich’s offer.
CBS News reports Rick Santorum bashing Gingrich for his Gold Commission proposal:
"One is, well, a little radioactive in the sense of you just don't know what he's going to do or what he's going to say," Santorum said, citing Gingrich's comments earlier in the day that he'd like to reexamine the gold standard.
On The Kudlow Report, Stephen Moore responds to Paul Krugman on the tax rate paid by millionaires such as Romney:
On NRO, Larry Kudlow applauds Mitt Romney’s attack on crony capitalism.
In The NYT, David Leonhardt notes that most US taxpayers pay less than Romney’s 15%.
On Fiscal Times, Bruce Bartlett examines Romney’s tax arrangements.
At Forbes, Nathan Lewis explains gold’s role in establishing a stable currency.
In The NYT, former Obama car czar Steven Rattner chides progressives for minimizing deficits, comparing them to “fiscally irresponsible” supply-siders.
At The WSJ, Steve Hanke notes the positive property tax treatment in growing football playoff cities New York, San Francisco, and Boston versus Baltimore, which is stuck with high tax rates and a low population:
In The WSJ, Edward Lazear explains that despite the lower unemployment rate, it’s not any easier to get a job.
On RCP, John Tamny defends investment banking from Occupy Wall Street criticism.
At International Liberty, Dan Mitchell responds to Alan Blinder’s flat tax criticism.
In The WSJ, Mary O’Grady notes international advice for Costa Rica to raise taxes:
Since January, the government of President Laura Chinchilla of the National Liberation Party (PLN) has been pushing a package of sharp tax increases to fund a spike in government spending.
The IDB [Inter-American Development Bank] seems to approve. A statement released from its country representative on Friday said that the bank "does not advocate a specific tax burden or tax policy." But IDB tax expert Alberto Barreix has twice visited the country this year to endorse the Chinchilla plan, calling it "a heck of a tax reform." He has also said that Costa Rica needs a tax burden similar to Argentina's.
At The American, James Pethokoukis features two depressing charts on unemployment.
From the archives, GI Joepresents a relevant tale of monetary destruction with gold as a replacement:
On Slate, David Greenberg explores the Republican obsession with Calvin Coolidge.
At Forbes, William F. Ford and Polina Vlasenko suggest unemployment would be 6.8% without QE1 and 2.
On The Kudlow Report, Stephen Moore debates the impact of spending cuts:
In The WSJ, Stephen Moore reports an item that could explain the market’s nosedive this week: the budget deal may be based on assumptions that the Bush tax cuts lapse, the AMT expands, and new Obamacare taxes kick in, adding $3.5 trillion to the baseline. This will make maintaining lower taxes additionally difficult, on top of the $1.5 trillion of spending cuts already on the table.
At US News, Peter Roff notes on the coming tax battle.
From The Washington Post, Keynesian Larry Summers recommends raising taxes.
In The WSJ, AEI’s Kevin Hassett argues Keynesian stimulus may work for normal recessions but is ineffective after a financial crisis:
Every stimulus effort has not two but three stages. When the stimulus is imposed, there is some positive short-run increase in GDP. When the stimulus is removed, there is an approximately equal and opposite reduction in GDP. But after that, the stimulus must be paid for with higher taxes or ongoing borrowing—causing a further reduction in GDP. Thus the total impact of the Keynesian policy is negative over its life. This fact is visible even in the fine print of Congressional Budget Office analyses so often cited by stimulus apologists, such as its 2009 finding that the Obama stimulus would reduce output in the long run.
At Southern California Public Radio, American Spectator columnist Ben Stein continues to attack tax cuts and supply-side economics, saying there’s no evidence whatsoever that higher tax rates have any impact on the nation’s growth.
In The NYT, Georgetown’s Joseph McMartin suggests Reagan busting the air traffic controllers’ union led to three decades of weak labor.
On COAL, Paul Krugman cites the gold standard's role in the Great Depression.
The Onionspoofs Ben Bernanke (warning: bad language).
In The NYT, Jeff Sommer quotes Jeff Bell and Lew Lehrman on rising interest in the gold standard, but commits the error of discounting gold’s price for inflation:
The last apex of the back-to-gold movement was perhaps in 1980. It may have been a signal that the price of gold was about to peak. Could we be approaching a turning point now? “You could make that argument,” Mr. Bell says. “The big question is whether the government and the Federal Reserve will be able to get the economy under control without a return to gold.”
In Forbes, Steve Forbes advises the President to heed two important dates.
Also at Forbes, Nathan Lewis explains that gold is stable, not deflationary.
On The Kudlow Report, US Rep. Eric Cantor recounts that debt-ceiling negotiations broke down because the President insisted on tax increases:
At Forbes, Peter Ferrara notes the expected tax increases in 2013 and elimination of the Fed’s duel mandate.
On Forbes, Reuven Brenner suggests the Federal Reserve is mispricing credit.
This week’s winner of the Kevin Williamson Shooting-Inside-the-Foxhole Award goes to fractional reserve banking opponent Gary North at lewrockwell.com, for his harsh attack on sound money advocates Robert Mundell and Ralph Benko.
Speaking of Williamson, last week the National Review author once again muddied the waters by rebuking pro-growth advocates including fellow NR columnist Larry Kudlow.
On Kudlow, my old roommate Tim Carney debates the debt ceiling:
In The WSJ, author Margaret Hoover suggests a “jobs, jobs, jobs” agenda will win the GOP young voters.
Reagan brought an entire generation to the Republican Party in 1980, and in 1984 he won the youth vote by 20%. The GOP needs this kind of revolution again if it hopes to recapture the White House and create a sustained majority.
The Washington Postcontinues the media’s fascination with anti-tax advocate Grover Norquist.
In Business Week, David J. Lynch reports that Republicans embrace Art Laffer’s tax ideas.
The WSJnotes GOP candidate Michelle Bachmann suggesting lower income workers should pay higher taxes.
