In a just-published piece in Tax Notes, AEI economists Kevin Hassett and Alan Viard explain how targeted tax increases on big oil companies pose significant risks to the economy.

As part of a bid for renewed authority to streamline government, the White House wants to merge six agencies into one bureaucracy focused on trade and competitiveness. The plan has sparked substantial criticism from the U.S. business and trade policy communities. An expert panel will weigh in on the controversy and evaluate President Obama's reorganization proposal.

There are solid ways to move forward with high-speed rail in the United States, but a new line between San Francisco and Los Angeles is not among them.

Many of the critics of the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), and other legislation seeking to combat intellectual property violations on the Internet, say they are fighting efforts to “censor” the web. SOPA is many things, but if words still have meaning it cannot be fruitfully described as censorship.

Congress is getting in the holiday spirit, and top on their gift list for American workers is extending President Obama’s payroll tax holiday, set to expire at the end of the year. But, as is the case with many gift ideas, this one sounds better than it is in real life.

Retargeting FHA will be a long process, but that process should begin with allowing the temporary loan limits to drop.  While the reduction in loan limits affects few loans; a reversal will indicate that Congress is not serious about beginning the process of bringing back private sector involvement.  

The private sector can and should play an important role in public health, but it remains to be seen whether or not the benefits that have arisen from the AMFm could have been achieved through alternative mechanisms and potentially at lower cost.

The university is evolving, leaving many to wonder whether a university education is quite the bargain that its defenders claim it to be and leading to significant changes in what students take from their university experiences.