Taxes and Spending

A non-exhaustive review of government spending over the last quarter century.

Europe’s eye-watering tax levels are a leading cause of stagnation of European economies, as well as the symptom par excellence of statist gluttony.

A vacancy tax is a charge imposed on property owners who leave residential or commercial properties unoccupied for a specified duration. As usual, a statist violation of property rights.

Dr. Robert Murphy explains why America’s chronic trade deficits trace to Nixon’s 1971 gold exit—not China—and how a popular reading of Triffin’s “dilemma” confuses the issue.

President Trump has proposed a 50-year mortgage for new homebuyers, ostensibly to make housing more affordable. Actually, this financial instrument will make housing more costly and do nothing to address the root of this entire problem: the artificial housing shortage.

How did Murray Rothbard view Ronald Reagan's legacy? A mood of blind "feel-good" Americanism, entrenched big government, and the evisceration of libertarian gains—leaving only one positive (repealing the 55 mph speed limit).

In this lecture from the 2025 Mises Institute Supporters summit, Ryan looks at how the modern state is built on the rapid rise of taxation in recent centuries. 

The justices that Trump appointed to the Supreme Court have shown a recent intolerance for the kinds of semantic leaps his administration is relying on to justify its tariffs. Will they remain consistent or fall in line behind the president?

Dr. David Gordon explains why the leading philosophical defenses of taxation collapse, and why natural rights still say taxation is theft.

Ryan McMaken takes a deep dive on food stamp spending, food stamp recipients, and how Big Ag and other industry lobbyists fight to keep food stamp spending flowing and increasing.