American Experiment Opposes the Carbon Tax Scam

Last week, 75 conservative organizations signed a public letter to Congress opposing “any carbon tax” days after reports that Utah Republican Sen. Mitt Romney openly considered backing carbon tax bill, and American Experiment was one of them. The letter, circulated by Americans for Tax Reform, read: “We oppose any carbon tax. A carbon tax raises the cost of heating your home in the winter and cooling your home in the summer. It raises the cost of filling your car. A carbon tax increases the cost of everything Americans buy and lowers Americans’ effective take home pay. A carbon tax increases...

In the Tank (EP195) – “Luxury Communism.” News in The Digital Age, Deepfakes

Heartland’s Donald Kendal, and Justin Haskins are joined by Isaac Orr and Jim Lakely in episode #195 of the In The Tank Podcast. This weekly podcast features (as always) interviews, debates, and roundtable discussions that explore the work of think tanks across the country. The show is available for download as part of the Heartland Daily Podcast every Friday. Featured in today’s podcast is work from The Heartland Institute, the RAND Corporation, Reason Foundation, and the Brookings Institution.

Minnesota’s economic news, w/e 6/14/19

A round-up of the last week’s economic news stories in Minnesota.

AMERICAN EXPERIMENT BOOK SHELF

Study finds D.C. school choice program increases student satisfaction

The D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program (OSP), serving low-income students in the nation’s capital, has generated high satisfaction among its participants.

New Study Finds Wind and Solar Are Still More Expensive Than Existing, Even Brand New, Fuel-Based Generators

A new study published by the Institute for Energy Research (IER) concluded that building new wind and solar farms is up to 120 percent more expensive per megawatt hour of production than existing resources, like natural gas, coal, nuclear, and hydroelectric generators, shown in the chart below. These findings suggest that Minnesota utility companies, lawmakers, and renewable energy advocacy groups have been falsely implying that by building new wind and solar facilities in the state, electricity costs would be reduced. Instead, due to the irresponsible renewable energy policies and mandates that have taken hold in Minnesota, what we have seen...

China is Building 89 Shercos in the Coming Years

Yesterday I posted about how India is building a lot of coal-fired power plants. These power plants would have a generation capability equal to building the Sherburne County (Sherco) coal-fired power plant, Minnesota’s largest electricity generator, 42 times. It turns out that China, not to be outdone, is going to build the equivalent of 89 Shercos to provide affordable, around-the-clock energy for millions of people. This is good news for Chinese citizens, who use 63 percent less electricity, on a per-capita basis, than people living in the United States, but it could mean bad news for energy intensive industries like...

Paul Krugman’s Predictions about “Austerity” Aren’t Aging Well

Paul Krugman’s arguments do not fare well against evidence presented in a new book titled "Austerity: When It Works and When It Doesn’t."