In early December, Donald Trump wrote that the alleged stolen election of 2020 “allows for the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution.” Trump clearly recognizes that the Constitution is an obstacle to what he wants: the rule of whim. The rule of whim is precisely what the Constitution…
In recent years, voters and politicians have increasingly embraced rent control in response to rising housing costs. The resurgence of rent control is an example of democracy in action. Democracy means unlimited majority rule, that the majority may do as it pleases simply because it is the majority. If some individuals are acting in a…
In early December, Maxwell Frost tweeted that he had been denied an apartment in Washington, DC, because of “really bad credit.” This is noteworthy only because the twenty-five year-old Florida Democrat was elected to the United States House of Representatives in November. In subsequent comments Frost engaged in a denial of responsibility for his past…
Both Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick have said that “school choice”—i.e., vouchers or education savings plans—will be a priority in the 2023 legislative session. Advocates of “school choice” programs scored victories across the nation during the midterm elections. Every gubernatorial candidate who supports school choice was elected. Some, such as The Washington…
Since early in the pandemic, we have heard countless stories of the hardships faced by renters due to the lockdowns. Thrown out of work, many tenants were unable to pay their rent. In response, the federal government, along with many state and local governments, imposed eviction moratoriums. We heard virtually nothing about the hardships that…
In 2018, Austin adopted a “preference policy” to sell homes to families displaced by gentrification. Six months ago, the city finally got around to actually putting a house on the market. It remains unsold, despite the fact that the house is selling for about 40 percent of Austin’s median sales price. The program is just…
In my previous post, I wrote about a ruling by the rent-guidelines board in Kingston New, York. That ruling reduced rents for 1,200 units in controlled by the city’s rent control ordinance. Another ruling allows tenants to protect rent increases between January 2019 and August 2022. If allowed to stand, these ruling sets a very…
The school choice movement is gaining momentum across the nation. The American Federation for Children (AFC) is one of the nation’s leading advocates for school choice. According to the organization’s website, AFC seeks to empower families, especially lower-income families, with the freedom to choose the best K-12 education for their children. We believe all parents…
Most people want the freedom to choose how they will live their lives. Yet, many of those same people advocate policies that eliminates freedom of choice for others. They support freedom of choice, so long as they agree with the choices. Sadly, we see this among both Republicans and Democrats. Republicans don’t like the choices…
The political actors change, but the script remains essentially the same. Over time, different individuals occupy the stage, but the principles upon which they act remain consistent. Consider the policies supported by Obama, Trump, and Biden. Obama imposed controls and restrictions on energy producers in an attempt to foster “renewable” energy. He did not hesitate…
As previously noted on this blog, construction of new housing in St. Paul has been greatly reduced compared to the years before voters passed a rent control law last November. Many developers argue that they are having difficulty attracting capital because of the law. Despite a recent amendment to the law that exempts new construction…