Maryland Meets the Laffer Curve

Greedy politicians in Annapolis doubled the cigarette tax in Maryland for the ostensible purposes of reducing a budget deficit and financing more government spending. They increased spending (of course), but their tax hike is not generating much additional revenue. As the Washington Post reports, consumers are adjusting their behavior to minimize their tax burden:
Cigarette sales […]

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The Mysterious Mr. Obama

Yesterday, one minute apart, I received two email messages that sort of sum up the mixed libertarian views on Barack Obama. First, an old friend forwarded an AP story in which Obama promised to repeal any executive orders that “trample on liberty”:

Barack Obama told House Democrats on Tuesday that as president he would order his […]

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Typical Bad Advice from the IMF

The International Monetary Fund has a dismal reputation for peddling snake-oil economic advice, with higher taxes and currency devaluation always high on their list. Sometimes, I wonder whether that is an unfair characterization, but then I see that their latest analysis of the Japanese economy endorses higher taxes. Tax-news.com has a summary:
While welcoming the efforts […]

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Milton Friedman on Drug Prohibition

Since it’s Milton Friedman’s birthday today, take a moment to watch this brief video clip.  It is an interview conducted by our friends at the Marijuana Policy Project shortly before Dr. Friedman passed away.
For related Cato work on the disastrous drug war, go here.

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State Government Spending and Borrowing Is Soaring

The Department of Commerce released second quarter national income data today. The data includes estimates of state and local spending and revenues. (See Table 3.3)
Here is what I found comparing the first two quarters of 2008 with the first two quarters of 2007.
- State and local tax revenues have grown about 2.1 percent over last year, with personal income taxes up […]

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Steve Chapman on Consent Searches

Steve Chapman takes a look at the problem of ‘voluntary’ roadside searches.  Excerpt:
If I approach as you pull into a parking space and ask if you’d mind my rummaging through your car, the chances are at least 90 percent that you’d decline. But if a police officer stops you with the same request, the chances are […]

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