The collapse of Silicon Valley Bank has some policymakers considering expanding government deposit insurance to cover all deposits. Those advocating such a move believe it will help stabilize the banking system and prevent future bank runs. While these are desirable objectives, expanding deposit insurance won’t accomplish them. The notion that deposit insurance could destabilize the […]
After two worrisome months, we are finally getting some better news on the inflation front. The Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Index (PCEPI) grew at a continuously compounded annual rate of 3.2 percent in February, down from 6.9 percent in January. PCEPI inflation was just 2.1 percent in November 2022 and 2.4 percent in December 2022. […]
In one of the nation’s greatest blunders, we (that is, our representatives in Congress) decided to subsidize higher education with easy-to-get loans for anyone who wanted to give college a try. The total of student loan debt is $1.7 trillion; some of the debtors can’t pay back what they owe, and our “compassionate” political leaders […]
No one knows who John Cowperthwaite is. No one who is not a classical liberal that is. Among that small subset of the population, Cowperthwaite is an unsung hero. As the civil servant who essentially directed the economic policy of Hong Kong after World War II, when it was a British colony, his indefatigable commitment […]
The Biden administration has floated another bloated budget, one that will put the US national debt at $43.6 trillion by 2033, assuming its optimistic growth and interest-rate projections pan out and the Ukraine war ends. If this budget passes, the debt will hit 110 percent of GDP, federal spending will exceed 25 percent of GDP, […]
