In 2011, the Government Mortgage Complex accounted for 88 percent of all first-mortgage originations in the United States, with the government also controlling an estimated 90 percent of the student loan market. The government’s growing dominance in the home mortgage and student loan categories is cause for concern, posing a threat to private investors, borrowers, and taxpayers.

Hope springs eternal among policy makers in Europe’s beleaguered periphery. At five minutes to midnight in Athens, and with a bank run having started in Madrid, these policy makers cling to the forlorn hope that somehow Germany is going to relent on its strong opposition to euro bonds.

An escalation of the European debt crisis would pose a real threat to the U.S. economic recovery.

A Greek or Irish default could bring into serious question the serviceability of around $2 trillion of European sovereign debt, a magnitude that should not be dismissed for its potential impact on the Eurozone's overall economy.

Friday's labor report is the latest confirmation that our economy is sputtering, and a deeper look at the little-known civilian employment-population ratio, presents what may be a more revealing and troublesome picture.

This book by Alan Viard and Robert Carroll proposes to completely replace the income tax system with a progressive consumption tax.

What do America’s memorials and monuments tell us about our nation and our identity as citizens? How should we memorialize past events and individuals?

The anniversary of Osama bin Laden’s death last week focused attention briefly on the continued threat posed by al Qaeda Central. But what about al Qaeda's franchises elsewhere, like al Shabaab in Somalia? The viability of the threat these groups pose to the U.S. deserves more careful consideration than it has received.