Tax

I believe that every person in the tax policy game—from members of the tax-writing committees to research assistants at the Tax Policy Center—should compute their own taxes. How better to understand the law and taxpayers’ experiences and have fun too! I have done my own taxes since I received my first W-2. But for the…

Yesterday was a classic example of Washington theater at its best. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and top Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer left a White House meeting with President Trump, found the TV cameras on the driveway, and announced they all agreed to put together a $2 trillion infrastructure bill. Of course, there are many details…

I had the good fortune to see Hamilton last month. The audience reaction to songs about the American Revolution and establishing a national bank was almost as impressive as the show itself. I also watched two other emotionally charged three-hour productions in April. These weren’t Broadway musicals about government, though. They were Board of Trustee…

As a long-time baseball fan, I’m happy that my office moved closer to the Washington Nationals ballpark, where I expect to take in more games this year. But I’ll do so with some misgivings, in part because of how the Nationals and their former star Bryce Harper missed an opportunity. Not because Harper left DC…

In my new book, Fiscal Therapy: Curing America’s Debt Addiction and Investing in the Future, I show how to reduce federal debt in 2050 from a baseline projection of nearly 180 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) to less than 60 percent of GDP.  My proposal would control federal entitlement programs (such as Social Security…