Farm Bill Is a Fraud

After the Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management, widely known as the Farm Bill, failed to pass in the House of Representatives, there was a lot of finger pointing. But the finger should be pointed at every Congress since 1933 — the year the Agricultural Adjustment Act was passed to help small farms with crop insurance, price supports, import barriers and other forms of aid to farmers who were earning barely enough to survive. Unfortunately,... Read More

The Dangers of China’s Aggressive Strategy

China’s relationship with the United States is increasingly complex and competitive, and it’s bound to get even more complex as China pursues an aggressive growth strategy. When Chinese President Xi Jinping and President Obama met last weekend in California to try and mend their often tenuous relationship, it was clear that China had its own agenda. For China, this meeting was more show than a sincere desire for the two leaders to work... Read More

China: It’s Complicated

China’s relationship with the United States is increasingly complex and competitive, and it’s bound to get even more complex as China pursues an aggressive growth strategy. As Chinese President Xi Jinping and President Obama met last weekend in California to try and mend their often tenuous relationship, it was clear that China had its own agenda and this meeting was more show than a sincere desire for the two leaders to work together. While... Read More

Is Energy Independence a Pipe Dream?

Once again the Obama administration is picking winners and losers when it comes to energy. The president has vowed that America will be a net energy exporter. There’s only one roadblock: Obama himself. While the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has cracked down on American coal production, which adds more than $1 trillion in gross domestic product (GDP), generates more than $360 billion in household income, and supports nearly 7 million... Read More

Pipe(line) Dreams

Once again, the Obama administration is picking winners and losers when it comes to energy. The president has vowed that America will be a net energy exporter. There’s only one roadblock: Obama himself. While the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has cracked down on American coal production, which adds more than $1 trillion in gross domestic product (GDP), generates more than $360 billion in household income and supports nearly 7 million... Read More

Regulations Are Killing Jobs

When companies must spend money to comply with an ever-increasing flood of federal regulations, they need to make cuts in other areas. This usually means holding off on job creation or even cutting their existing work force and employee hours. What does it cost American businesses to comply with excessive federal regulations? The Competitive Enterprise Institute puts the figure at $1.8 trillion a year. This amount is more than half what it costs to... Read More

Increase Jobs by Reducing Regulations

When companies must spend money to comply with an ever-increasing flood of federal regulations, they need to make cuts in other areas. This usually means holding off on job creation or even cutting their existing work force and employee hours. What does it cost American businesses to comply with federal regulations? The Competitive Enterprise Institute puts the figure at $1.8 trillion a year — more than half what it costs to run the federal government.... Read More

Culture of Corruption

As I tried to suppress my anger over the news this week about the unfolding corruption within the Obama administration, I took a look back to see if our Founding Fathers had anticipated this. It didn’t take me long to find a quote from Thomas Jefferson, who wrote: “Experience has shown that even under the best forms of government those entrusted with power have, in time, and by slow operations, perverted it into tyranny.” This is... Read More

Hurdles Facing Obama’s Plan To Double Exports in Five Years

As an exporter, I half-heartedly believed in President Obama’s proposal to double U.S. exports in five years. That pledge was made in his State of the Union address in 2010, which means the clock is ticking on his plan to double American exports from $1 trillion to $2 trillion by 2015. His National Export Initiative (NEI) was supposed to “help farmers and small businesses increase their exports.” At the core of this plan was the... Read More

Better Late Than Never

As an exporter, I half-heartedly believed President Obama’s proposal to double U.S. exports in five years. That pledge was made in his State of the Union address in 2010, which means the clock is ticking on his plan to double American exports from $1 trillion to $2 trillion by 2015. His National Export Initiative (NEI) was supposed to “help farmers and small businesses increase their exports.” At the core of this plan was to create... Read More