09 | August | 2012

Wednesday, June 19, 2013

‘Taxation Hero’: ExxonMobil has paid more than $1 trillion in taxes since 1999, which is 3x its profits over that period

Mark J. Perry | August 9, 2012, 6:21 pm

In their July 2012 policy brief “Investment Heroes: Who’s Betting on America’s Future?” Diana Carew and Michael Mandel of the Progressive Policy Institute (PPI) recognized 25 American companies as “Investment Heroes” of 2012 for their collective investment of $136 billion … read more >

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Foreign and Defense Policy, Middle East and North Africa

Banter #66: Paul Wolfowitz on Syria

Stuart James | August 9, 2012, 4:08 pm

This week on Banter, we sit down with AEI Scholar Paul Wolfowitz for an update on what’s going on in Syria. Paul has written and spoken extensively on the issue and brings a ton of knowledge and expertise to the … read more >

Image Credit: Gonzolito (Wikimedia Commons) (CC BY-SA 3.0)

Foreign and Defense Policy, India

India, China, and the Olympics

Sadanand Dhume | August 9, 2012, 2:59 pm

As the London Olympics draw to a close, punditry on what the medals table says about the world is flowing thick and fast. At the Financial Times, Matthew Engel argues, with a touch of hyperbole, that if China tops the … read more >

Pethokoukis

Oops! That Tax Policy Center analysis of the Romney tax plan is based on one hugely questionable assumption

James Pethokoukis | August 9, 2012, 2:41 pm

Here’s the killer paragraph from the recent Tax Policy Center study that supposedly shows Mitt Romney would raise taxes on middle-incomers: The key intuition behind our central result is that, because the total value of the available tax expenditures (once tax … read more >

Pethokoukis

It’s Obama who’s probably eager to raise taxes on the middle class

James Pethokoukis | August 9, 2012, 2:09 pm

The Obama campaign is arguing that Mitt Romney wants to cut taxes for rich people and pay for it by raising taxes on the middle class (a charge which has been debunked). But if average Americans are going to get … read more >

Mitt Romney speaks to supporters in Iowa

Economics, Taxes and Spending

How the Tax Policy Center could improve its Romney tax study

Matt Jensen | August 9, 2012, 2:08 pm

With a few simple additions, a follow-up report—let’s call it my dream study—could clear up much of the confusion and build on the authors’ hard work in a way that would be very useful for the tax debate. read more >

Carpe Diem

Michigan politician objects to tickets selling for 10X face value, so what about tickets selling 10X below face value?

Mark J. Perry | August 9, 2012, 12:40 pm

Detroit News — “A state representative said Friday he will introduce legislation capping the markup on tickets sold on the secondary market — in particular on websites like StubHub — at 10 percent above face value. State Rep. Douglas Geiss, … read more >

Pethokoukis

Pethokoukis Podcast: An interview with economist Scott Sumner on market monetarism

James Pethokoukis | August 9, 2012, 11:29 am

In this edition of my Ricochet-AEI podcast, I chat with economist Scott Sumner, professor of economics at Bentley University and author of the must-read TheMoneyIllusion blog. Professor Sumner is probably best known for his advocacy of “market monetarism,” a contrarian critique of the Federal … read more >

Pethokoukis

Actually, ‘game changer’ tax report doesn’t say Romney wants to raise taxes on middle class

James Pethokoukis | August 9, 2012, 10:36 am

The Obama campaign has been hammering Mitt Romney over an analysis of his tax reform proposal that concluded it was “not mathematically possible” to design a plan that does what Romney says his would do: a) cut tax rates by 20%, … read more >

Foreign and Defense Policy, Middle East and North Africa

Iran: Only hospitable to the Sunnis abroad?

Ali Alfoneh | August 9, 2012, 9:51 am

Last night, Samad Ali Lakizadeh, the Islamic Republic’s Ambassador to Warsaw, hosted representatives of the Muslim community in Poland for iftar, breaking the fast after a long day of fasting. read more >