At this event, Alan Viard will present the X tax proposal while James Mackie of the U.S. Department of the Treasury and Chris Edwards of the Cato Institute will offer commentary.

Last week I wrote about the standings in the presidential race and said it looked like a long, hard slog through about a dozen clearly identified target states, much like the contests in 2000 and 2004. Call it the 2000/2004 long, hard slog scenario.

Cass Sunstein, administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, will present an overview of federal agencies' plans, which outline initiatives aimed at eliminating tens of millions of hours in reporting burdens and billions of dollars in regulatory costs.

Take a look at the trajectory of US spending on defense and entitlements in the coming decade and how it has changed in the past four years.

CPSC commissioner Anne M. Northup will speak about recent steps taken to reduce the burden of over-regulation.