Everyone likes the idea of fair competition. That’s why everyone supported the 2007 investigation of an N.B.A. referee who knowingly influenced the outcome of professional basketball games on which he or his associates had placed bets. There was an outcry by the players, the owners, the league, and the fans — because the idea of picking winners...
Texas Voters Approve Billions in New Debt On Tuesday, voters approved an overwhelming majority of the $9 billion-plus in new debt pitched by cities, counties, school districts, and special districts, according to the Texas Comptroller’s Bond Election Roundup website. Here’s how the top 10 largest new debt proposals fared and a few observations to boot....
In “Can You Still #Resist When Your State’s On Fire? A postcard from the Californiapocalypse,” Amy Wilentz, a journalist, writer, and English professor at the University of California, Irvine, details for The New York Times a truthy series of myths about California’s fiery, electric-less travails. She establishes her credentials at the onset by letting her...
“Two days. Two reports citing the same data. Two different conclusions.” That is how Rick Seltzer described the near-simultaneous release of two studies looking at state funding in Inside Higher Ed. The first study was written by myself for the Texas Public Policy Foundation and found that state disinvestment is a myth. The second study, by Michael Mitchell, Michael Leachman, and...
Two new renewable energy generators are being proposed in Cooke County. The two projects – BT Cooke Solar, LLC and Wildcat Creek Wind Farm LLC – are both seeking significant tax breaks in return for bringing their investment to the area. BT Cooke Solar’s application was posted in March of this year, and Wildcat Creek...
Sen. Elizabeth Warren released significant details around her Medicare for All proposal last week. Much of the critical commentary has taken exception to the math and logic behind the Democratic presidential candidate’s analysis. She appears to have significantly underestimated the costs of the proposal and exaggerated or double-counted the revenue that could be raised from her new...
Did you know that the Constitution provides a means for the people, acting through their states, to propose constitutional amendments, without needing any support or participation from the U.S. Congress? Under Article V of the Constitution, if two-thirds of the states approve resolutions calling on Congress to hold an amendments convention, Congress has no choice...
The latest defense of Obamacare isn’t a defense at all, it’s just the claim that Republicans don’t have an alternative and should therefore stop trying to get the landmark health insurance law overturned by the courts. But now, the House of Representatives’ Republican Study Committee has stepped up with its own plan, “A Framework for Personalized, Affordable Care.”...
Henry Ford once said “a customer can have a car painted any color—so long as it’s black.” The automobile was new to the market, and Ford wanted his factories to run so efficiently that the cost could be low enough “that no man making a good salary will be unable to own one.” Once competitors...
While the United States is getting out of the Paris Climate Accord, some cities have decided to stay in. To date, more than 400 U.S. cities have committed to fulfill the Paris Climate Accord — despite the president’s announcement. This coalition got an international boost last week when New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced a...
A war of words has broken out between conservative state lawmakers and liberal local officials, with each side questioning the other’s motivations and character. These sometimes-caustic exchanges are not new to Texas politics, but the barbs are usually traded behind closed doors and inside committee rooms, not aired openly. The harshness of the public squabbling...
Former Rep. Beto O’Rourke of Texas – once a rising star in the crowded field of Democratic presidential hopefuls – withdrew from the race Friday after belatedly realizing he couldn’t become president simply by attacking President Trump without offering a better alternative. Although he joined the chorus of Democrats denouncing Trump with ever-growing ferocity and embraced full-blown Trump Derangement...