100. Christmas Spirit: Free Markets = Free People
This newsletter dives into a number of key economic issues and provides a pro-growth approach for governments to get out of the way to let people prosper.
Hello Friend,
Can you believe that it’s only one week until Christmas? Time is our most scarce resource which is a big reason why there’s no such thing as free stuff because of scarcity that requires tradeoffs with every decision.
As I write this newsletter and review pictures over for our family Christmas card, I am reminded of how fast time flies. Did I miss much? Likely so. But that’s a reason why I take so many pictures, tell my loved ones that I love them, share my testimony with others often, write this newsletter, host the Let People Prosper podcast, and work each day to Let People Prosper. These are the steps in my life that I believe are God’s will, so it brings me a great deal of satisfaction even when I’m tired, not feeling well (I’ve been battling a nasty virus lately), or other challenges.
I hope that you will continue to find God’s purpose for you. Because we don’t want to wait until we are in Heaven above to have abundant joy as we should do so in God’s created Heaven here.
It’s been been a few weeks since my last written newsletter but I hope that you’ve been enjoying my weekly podcast episodes. I enjoy making them annd learning from each guest. I have been working on improving each episode so if you haven’t checked it out lately please do. I’ve also created a Let People Prosper page on Facebook and on Instagram where I’ll be posting more information and short videos along with my normal posts on Twitter and LinkedIn. See the button below to find those links and follow me there as well. Thank you and please send me feedback. Let’s get to it.
Hot Take: We need a pro-growth policy approach that gets governments out of the way at every level to unleash the potential of Americans to overcome the current U.S. recession that will get worse before it gets better. Here are my recommendations.
State and U.S. Economic and Policy Take: Here’s the latest on the economic situations of the following entities and what should be done to foster more free-market capitalism to best let people prosper.
U.S. economy: The U.S. recession continues as it likely started in March 2022. There are many reasons for this but one indicator of the suffering of Americans is real average weekly earnings which have declined on an annual basis for 20 straight months. Read the U.S. economic situation report for more.
Texas economy: Texas leads the way in job creation over the last year and in economic growth in the latest reported quarter but there’s more to do to help struggling Texans deal with the state’s affordability crisis, especially state and local governments spending less and moving to sales taxes and away from property taxes. Read the Texas economic situation report for more.
Louisiana economy: Louisiana’s labor market looks okay with a 3.3% unemployment rate but the labor force has -15,617 (-0.7%) fewer people in it than pre-shutdown in February 2020 and private sector employment is -34,400 (-2.1%) jobs below then, indicating a much weaker labor market and economy. Read the Louisiana economic situation report for more.
Let People Prosper Show: Please subscribe on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts.
Recent guests have included Dean Stansel of SMU’s Bridwell Institute on Economic Freedom of North America, Brian Riedl of Manhattan Institute on presidential fiscal legacies, State Rep. Richard Nelson (R-LA) on removing government barriers, and State Rep. Matt Schaefer (R-TX) on conservative governing.
Upcoming guests include Scott Lincicome of the Cato Institute on the costs of trade protectionism and the new book Empowering the New American Worker, and Angela Rachidi of the American Enterprise Institute on the new book American Renewal and the need for safety net reforms. Don’t miss them!
Check out these short videos from recent episodes.
The first one is a short video from the recent episode with Dean Stansel on how Texas and every state need to pass school choice through education saving accounts.
Here’s another short video with him on how states without income taxes perform better than others.
This short video with Stansel notes how spending is the ultimate burden of government.
Here’s a short video from the episode with Rep. Matt Schaefer on how many Republicans have lost sight of fiscal conservatism.
Rep. Schaefer makes a strong case for reducing occupational licenses in the following video, watch the full video at the link above for more on this and other issues.
Check out this short video on why Louisiana lags behind in economic opportunity because of too much spending, taxes, and regulations by Rep. Richard Nelson.
Latest Interviews
Here’s my latest interview with Austin Peterson on why free markets are good for the working class and how government is the problem with social media.
Watch my interview with Texans for Fiscal Responsibility on fiscal issues facing Texas and other states and what to do about them.
Check out my interview on NTD News where I discuss the generational high in inflation and what to do about it.
TAKE ON STATE ECONOMIES & POLICIES
Here’s my latest research on how institutions matter for human flourishing. Those states with more free-market capitalism and limited government tend to have more jobs and opportunities for the poor to achieve long-lasting self-sufficiency.
Check out the latest Conservative Texas Budget with figures for the state’s 2024-25 biennial budget and how it has improved over the last four budgets given this approach that helps limit the entire budget to a maximum growth rate of population growth plus inflation. Of course, it would be best to spend much less than that or even freeze the budget given how many people are suffering during this affordability crisis primarily from policies from D.C. and the local level.
Check out this excellent video on an innovative way to transform safety nets so that people can get on a path to long-term self-sufficiency through empowerment accounts.
Property taxes in Texas are growing faster than the average taxpayer’s ability to pay for the. Here’s my latest co-authored research on the need to spend less in order to have more surplus to return to taxpayers through the form of reducing school district maintenance and operations property taxes until they are eliminated as quickly as possible.
Commentary at EconLib on the need to advance the state flat tax revolution until states eliminate income taxes.
TAKE ON U.S. ECONOMY & POLICIES
The latest jobs report shows weakness in the labor market.
Check out this thread on the latest book by the Cato Institute on Empowering The New American Worker.
The Biden administration likes to use a lot of spin…
Inflation has cooled but it’s still way too high from bad policies by Congress and the Fed.
Inflation is deflating the American Dream.
CLOSING TAKE
National conservatives, populists, and progressives should remember these wise words by President Ronald Reagan. Too often too many people are getting behind government solutions to problems whereby the government is the cause of the problem. Adding more government will only exacerbate the problem. Remove the problem of government failure first!
Milton Friedman understood this quite well…”I’m not a conservative, I believe in freedom.” Yes!
One day I’ll have to tell you about all of my failures…
I’m praying God provides us with great joy during the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ.
Have a blessed day! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Let people prosper.