The difficulty with a pandemic is the double-edged sword of understanding why there are mitigation efforts and why one must be cautious during this time, but being equally frustrated with gating methods.

Under the shadow of an incoming Biden administration, members of Congress are working against the clock to cobble together yet another continuing resolution (CR) to keep the government funded and running. As has been too often the case in recent years, lawmakers have let procrastination and …

Home to some of the most beautiful and bountiful fishing and hunting grounds in the world, Louisiana has long been known as the Sportsman’s Paradise. Unfortunately, a government-sponsored legal war against some of the country’s largest job creators has earned the state a new nickname: The La…

Barack Obama's and Eric Holder’s National Democratic Redistricting Committee (NDRC) aimed to raise $400 million to help flip state legislatures from red to blue in the 2020 elections.

The role of the journalist is to ask questions from those who have the answers.

Thanks in large part to the historically large influx of mail-in ballots in key battleground states, there’s a new administration likely headed to the White House. And, regardless of whether America has gotten a grip on the pandemic in time for the next election, mail-in voting is poised to …

If Joe Biden wants to bring our country together, he should endorse President Donald Trump’s demand not only for recounts but extensive ballot reviews in at least the four states where the Democrat now leads by a whisker: Arizona, Georgia, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

In recent years, the independent contractor (IC) distinction has become a more popular career choice.

For the millions of households struggling to cope with the coronavirus pandemic, keeping food on the table while saving for future expenses is no easy task. Fortunately, a recent court ruling provides a glimmer of hope that essential deliveries could become more affordable in the future.

This week, Attorney General Bill Barr joined attorneys general from 11 other states, including Louisiana, in releasing their much-anticipated antitrust lawsuit against Google.

That’s both the beauty and curse of the internet. As things occur and we watch, listen, or read them many are also bombarded with both that information or event, and more information regarding it, in real time. Consistently, information is being funneled out at a steady flow from many differ…

Americans have relied heavily on a dependable and fast internet connection as the pandemic has forced many jobs, schools and businesses to move online.

In response to the much-ballyhooed news reports about large corporations paying little to no taxes in a given year, Democratic nominee and former Vice President Joe Biden added a proposal for a minimum 15 percent tax on corporate profits to his platform. That may prove politically popular, b…

If ever there was a year to early vote, 2020 is it.

Americans are being told right now that our country has two options when it comes to delivering justice: A) institute law and order, or B) spend more on social programs. Turns out, voters actually want both.

President Trump vowed to reduce regulatory burdens, particularly for our nation’s rural communities. The recent modernization of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) is proof of this Administration following through on his promise.

In 2020, victories are never taken for granted – no matter how big or small.

Did Louisiana’s government infringe on the rights of its citizens with its COVID-19 mandates, and if so, what can we do to better protect life and liberty in the future?

The College Free Speech Rankings project, a joint undertaking by FIRE, College Pulse and RealClearEducation, released their report last week. Based on a survey of nearly 20,000 students at 55 colleges, this is the largest-ever examination of how conducive colleges and universities are to fre…

A new study from Yale School of Public Health should serve as a warning to e-cigarette opponents and public health officials pushing e-cigarette flavor bans and restrictions around the country. The Yale research revealed that higher levels of e-cigarette and marijuana use did not result in h…

This week marks a major breakthrough in the “campus free speech wars” – the battle over what many see as the evolution of America’s top academic institutions from bastions of truth-seeking to indoctrination camps for the next generation of political activists. The new College Free Speech Ran…

A university should be a place where students can be exposed to new ideas, where they can engage freely in debate and discussion. But do college students really feel free to speak their minds on campus? Newly released College Free Speech Rankings show that, at most colleges, the answer is no.

Across the country, Americans are starting to reap the benefits of lightning-fast 5G services. Rural, unserved users stand to benefit the most from the “latest and greatest” generation of mobile connectivity standards, since 5G services are significantly faster than 4G and the deployment onl…

As part of my job, I’ve been traveling the country — responsibly — for months, talking with Americans. And the thing I’m hearing most is: How do we get things back to normal?Six months into this unprecedented crisis, communities across our nation continue to weather extremely high unemployment claims and an economy that's in recession. The pain of businesses and those who can't find work is real and lasting. Though states have begun to reopen, businesses are getting back on their feet, and people are getting their jobs back, it’s not happening as quickly as they’d like. Elected officials at every level must recognize the importance of working with businesses and experts to responsibly and safely reopen our economy. Truck drivers, grocery store workers, and the people who have helped keep essential services open throughout this crisis are heroes. The ingenuity and resilience of Americans has brought us through tough challenges before, and we should embrace our ability to adapt and innovate to overcome this one.It’s time for Congress to do its part, too. People are looking for leadership from Washington. Instead, with a few notable exceptions, they are getting finger pointing, partisan gamesmanship, and a legislative debate dominated by arguments over the price tag of competing bills, as if money alone can solve the problem, instead of actual solutions.Congress has made no progress on stalled COVID relief legislation. In any case, lawmakers have shown little indication they’re ready to answer that question I keep hearing: How do we get back to normal?Congress should start by recognizing that their proposals have largely missed the mark, because they have focused on the wrong things, and too many of them. Big bills are bad bills and should be rejected. Beyond boasting historically high price tags that will dig us deeper into debt, bills this size seem more focused on giving billions to defense contractors, as was the case with the HEALS Act, or providing a $1 trillion bailouts for state and local governments that don’t need it, as was the case with the HEROES Act, than on actual solutions. Even the Senate’s “skinny” relief bill, which was more “targeted” than any of its predecessors, continues to focus on the wrong things. Now that the Senate measure has failed to move forward, Congress should shift its focus to solutions that actually help us emerge from — not merely endure — this crisis.That means getting people back to work and finding ways to help our economy reopen more quickly and safely.Congress can start by clearing the way for individuals, communities, and businesses to adapt, innovate, and meet the needs of the new environment they will be returning to.This means giving schools, religious institutions, and businesses the certainty they need to reopen responsibly and offer services to the public again by guaranteeing liability protections.This also means giving individuals the flexibility to pursue opportunities as they arise, whether by reducing restrictions on home-based businesses or reforming financial regulations so that families and small businesses can more easily access capital to make their entrepreneurial dreams a reality.Of course, this also means ensuring responsible public health decisions regarding reopening can be made at the local level and applied fairly, with input from health experts, businesses, community leaders, and lawmakers.Congress should also ensure the $600-a-week unemployment insurance bonus that expired in July stays expired.If supplemental unemployment insurance is to be extended, it is Congress’ responsibility to do so through legislative action, not presidential executive order. Lawmakers should consider covering percentages of pre-COVID-19 wages instead of choosing a set dollar amount that applies across the board. At most, Congress should cap unemployment compensation at 100 percent of what individuals earned while working. There is no question that finding work is not as easy as it was before. But paying some people more unemployment than they made working full-time — as was the case with the $600-a-week bonus and is still the case, though to a lesser extent, with the $300-a-week bonus included in the “skinny” proposal  — makes it harder for businesses and employees to make their way back to contributing the services and products we need.Congress should also more aggressively fight the spread of the virus. Controlling the virus is crucial to any effort to move forward. Americans want things to go back to normal, but we can’t truly return to normal — much less recover stronger — unless people are confident that the spread is under control and our hospital systems are prepared to effectively treat people with the virus.They can start by recognizing what already has been working and do more of it.We should continue to eliminate administrative barriers to testing, treatment, and personal protective equipment. Temporary suspensions of restrictions on telemedicine and medical professionals working across state lines should be made permanent. States should repeal onerous certificate-of-need laws that limit access and drive up the costs of health care.Congress should also scrutinize its own policies that impact our ability to scale up or approve new testing methods more quickly.A targeted bill to help ramp up testing in advance of flu season may be in order. But of the $38 billion that Congress has already earmarked for testing and research, why has only $18 billion been disbursed? Let’s first focus on how to effectively use the money from the last big bill.Similarly, only in July — four months into the crisis — did the FDA finally approve pooled testing, which will help us test more people, more often, at a lower cost. And only in August did the Department of Health and Human Services announce that it was permanently removing a key bureaucratic hurdle to the rapid deployment of laboratory-developed diagnostic tests.Congress can do all this through targeted legislation that can be evaluated on whether it accomplishes what it sets out to accomplish and is less prone to being packed with special interest projects.Congress is right to work with urgency, but it must listen to the concerns of its constituents. They want their lives back. Rather than throwing money at the problem indiscriminately, lawmakers should double-down on the steps that have already proven successful, get people back to work, and lay the groundwork for us to emerge from this pandemic stronger and with more confidence than before.Tim Phillips is president of Americans for Prosperity.

Americans are being told right now that our country has two options when it comes to delivering justice: A) institute law and order, or B) spend more on social programs. Turns out, voters actually want both.

Congress is back, although we can’t quite say that we missed our “favorite” lawmakers. Now that the leaves are turning brown and there’s pumpkin spiced-everything all-around, our elected officials are back to their usual, partisan bickering. Senate Republicans returned from recess with a $50…

Two economic professors from Rice University recently released a book called the 'Economic Effects of Wealth Taxes.'

Among the political classes in Washington and the nation’s state capitals, when and how to open public schools has become yet another contentious issue with partisan battle lines and dueling talking points. This is not the case among the voters, however, according to the findings of an eye-o…

Congress is finally back in town, and they’ve got plenty of unfinished homework that has piled up since July. Lawmakers will likely need to pass a continuing resolution (CR) by Sept. 30 to avert yet another government shutdown. They will also have to figure out how to deal with continued sky…

So the Democrats killed the most recent stimulus package in the senate.

Washington is locked in gridlock, there’s an election on the horizon, and our country is desperate to get out of the COVID-19 economic slump. The good news is that states don’t have to wait for Congress to break its logjam. There’s something we can do right now to put Americans back to work,…

As a non-partisan advocate for energy policies that help our families, farmers and small businesses by keeping energy reliable, affordable, and environmentally responsible, Consumer Energy Alliance has long supported wind, solar, oil, natural gas, nuclear and all other forms of energy.

Since the death of George Floyd on May 25, protests and riots have shaken the country. Tensions escalated further on Aug. 23 after Jacob Blake was shot by police seven times under hotly disputed circumstances. During these flash points, more than 15 million Americans have protested for polic…

COVID-19 has affected the way society works through the education process.

Everyone knows that goods made in China have a massive hold on what Americans buy. Now China wants the world to be dependent on them for how things are delivered, as well as how they are made.

Party time is over. Republicans have just ended their national nominating convention, while Democrats capped theirs off last week. Throughout both conventions, speakers directed their firepower at the “enemy,” the opposing political party incapable of doing anything well.

One of the great economic studies of our time will be were Americans paying too much, or too little, in taxes.

On Aug. 8, President Donald Trump unilaterally deferred payroll taxes for millions of workers with the stroke of a pen. He also extended relief for student loan borrowers, bolstered unemployment benefits, and vaguely directed the Department of Housing and Urban Development to help out strugg…

Many cities and towns across the country are considering building government-owned (read: taxpayer-funded) broadband networks. The allure is that these systems will help close the digital divide and pay for themselves over time. In May, the Taxpayers Protection Alliance released a report sho…

The Trump administration has set an ambitious trade agenda for the remainder of 2020. In a House Ways and Means Committee hearing earlier this summer, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer stressed the president's intent to crack down on foreign countries that discriminate against Amer…

COVID-19 has pushed schools and their governing bodies - specifically the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education - to reconsider what typical learning looks like in Louisiana.

In its brief ruling Monday regarding the coastal lawsuits against some of Louisiana’s largest job creators, the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals sidestepped many substantive issues. The narrow decision made on the issue of timeliness sends the cases back to state court for the time being.…

Sen. Mike Braun isn’t happy that Congress left town without reaching a deal on the next COVID-19 relief bill as the nation continues its struggle to contain the virus. He’s even more concerned that Republicans are going to repeat a 2018 election mistake by failing to take on the nation’s soa…

COVID-19 and its spread through the country, as well as the state of Louisiana, has brought to light financial scenarios that have caught many by surprise.

We as governors — along with decision makers in state legislatures, school boards, workforce boards, and city and county governments — assess each day the growing damage of COVID-19 to our economic, educational, social and health care systems. We are especially concerned about the millions o…

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to rage across the U.S., many parents are faced with the difficult choice of whether to send their children to school or have them learn virtually from home. Some schools will begin the school year virtual-only, forcing children to complete their studies fr…

Throughout the nation, young people care about climate change and are eager to find solutions. With decades of life ahead of us, our generation recognizes that sound policy action could be the difference between a diminished future and one of continued growth and prosperity.