Economics

This afternoon, Congressman Ron Paul released his “Plan to Restore America,” which would cut $1 trillion in spending during the first year of the Paul administration.

It’s not just the Occupy Wall Street rabble who are promoting unorthodox ideas (to put it kindly) about our economic plight and how to create jobs. They have friends in Washington. A few examples:

The Mercatus Center at George Mason University has just released an important new study on the hiring practices of firms that used stimulus funds. It's fairly comprehensive, based on over 1,300 surveys of managers and employees. There's been very little good empirical data on the stimulus thus far, so the study contains a lot of valuable insights. Among the findings by authors Dan Rothschild and Garrett Jones:

Politico: "In money race, it’s advantage Democrats"

Robert Barro: "Keynesian Economics vs. Regular Economics"

Seth Lipsky: "A Missing Monument to Religious Freedom"

It’s easy to get caught up in the details of the political battle of the day over the nation’s economic and fiscal health—after all, that’s what we do in Washington. Unfortunately, many of our decision-makers and opinion leaders possess the skills required for political infighting in greater abundance than the capacity for thoughtful analysis. Their focus on the fight and on winning the 24-hour news cycle has produced a country that designs policy for tactical political advantage and not for the efficient use of scarce resources.

The Bourgeois Virtues

Ethics for an Age of Commerce

by Deirdre N. McCloskey

"Bill Clinton to Paul Ryan on Medicare Election: ‘Give me a Call’"

Is NY-26 a "A Blue-Collar Warning Sign"?

Stay classy, Ed Schultz.

Stanford economics professor and Hoover Insitution Fellow John B. Taylor argues that having the debt ceiling tied to spending cuts will bolster economic confidence and government credibility:

Speaking at the Economic Club of Chicago this afternoon, House Budget Committee chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) intensified his criticism of opponents of his "Path to Prosperity" budget plan, including President Barack Obama, calling their vision for the future of America one of "shared scarcity."

“There are those who say the United States should not be the global policeman. But if not us, who?”