This article is the first part of a two-part examination of the contentious issue of how state governments' provision of goods and services to the public should be taxed under a VAT.

In a sharp break from that campaign stance and the Administration's first three budgets, President Obama is now calling for an all-in dividend tax rate of almost 45 percent, the highest rate in 27 years. The president's about-face bodes ill for the economy.

In less than twenty-five years, government “affordable housing” and other housing policies have turned a healthy market into a financial ruin. Until Fannie and Freddie’s market dominance and the government’s role in the housing finance system are substantially reduced or eliminated, the United States will continue to have an inferior and unstable housing market.

Our research shows that competitive bidding—a key feature of the Wyden-Ryan plan—could save Medicare $339 billion over ten years while maintaining basic benefits and without raising taxes. Crucially, the elderly would not be exposed to the risk of higher health care costs, as in approaches that would set fixed voucher payments toward the purchase of medical insurance.

Federal workers receive both a wage premium and a benefits premium over similar private workers. State and local workers see a wage penalty, but the penalty is usually more than made up for in higher benefits.

While the mandate question holds great constitutional interest, the outcome won't greatly affect Obamacare's operation one way or the other. The Medicaid question, in contrast, is crucial.

There is a way to fix the Medicare program without raising taxes: use market-like arrangements to set prices for both the traditional fee-for-service (FFS) program and for private Medicare Advantage (MA) plans. A fully implemented competitive pricing system for Medicare would save $550 billion over 10 years.

A Social Security quirk will reduce payments for retirees born in 1947 due to Cost of Living Adjustments and could cause a typical sixty-two-year-old couple to lose almost $25,000 in benefits over their lifetimes.