The Sling

Economic Analysis and Competition Policy Research

Image: Last September, then vice-presidential candidate JD Vance called out high egg prices under the Biden Administration (AP Photo).

Last September, then vice-presidential candidate JD Vance proclaimed in a Pennsylvanian supermarket, “Eggs, when Kamala Harris took office, were short of $1.50 a dozen. Now a dozen eggs will cost you around $4.” The implication was clear—the Biden Administration’s policies allegedly caused egg prices to skyrocket. While Vance was mocked at the time for the... Read More

Image: The Abundance Institute hosted a policy summit in May 2025.

In May, Heatmap’s Robinson Meyer and Matthew Zeitlin wrote an article about House Republicans’ plan to weaken environmental review to accelerate the construction of new infrastructure. The subject line of the email promoting the piece read, “Permitting Reform Is Back, Baby,” a rather nonchalant way to describe the latest legislative plan to gut the National... Read More

Image: Six months after its creation, the Works Progress Administration employed about 2.7 million Americans.

The Inflation Reduction Act’s failure to garner votes for Democrats has generated significant handwringing in political circles. Although targeted toward benefiting red states, the IRA failed to produce meaningful impact before the 2024 presidential election. Voters presumably care about one type of spending—the type that results in an immediate reward. Delayed gratification through subsidizing the... Read More

Image: The FTC appears to be carrying the water for Elon Musk.

Many mornings, the first thing I do is drink coffee out of my FTC mug. I worked at the FTC for three years. There, I helped the smartest career civil servants and political appointees I have ever met fight for the American people. They inspired me to see the law as a force for good... Read More

Image: Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez speak at a Fight Oligarchy rally. K.M. Cannon / Las Vegas Review-Journal / TNS via Getty Images file

In February 2022, I wrote a piece in The American Prospect advocating for antitrust enforcement as a means to combat inflation. I wasn’t totally wrong. In light of personal experience in price-fixing litigation and the fate of the Biden administration, however, my perspective has shifted. Antitrust can be part of the solution, but it can’t... Read More

Image: The neoclassical school was a category originally used by Thorstein Veblen to group the Austrian school of thought with the “marginalists.”

These past few months have had more than their share of decade-long weeks. Not even three months in, the second Trump administration has already totally shattered norms and scrambled the playing field, challenging everything we thought we knew about the government’s role in the economy. We thought that Congress had the power of the purse,... Read More

Image: Musk has usurped congressional power and initiated the dismantling of agencies like the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

After Elon Musk poured almost $300 million into his campaign last year, President Trump returned the favor by endowing Musk with unrestricted authority to restructure the federal government. In just over two months, Musk has usurped congressional power and initiated the dismantling of agencies like USAID, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and the Department of... Read More

Image: The abandoned Bethlehem Steel plant's gas blowing room. (Source: Abandoned America)

Free trade is under increasing attack by both the progressive left and the populist right. Although the left and the right offer different policy solutions—the progressive left stresses combining industrial policy, antitrust policy, and support for labor with targeted tariffs, while the populist right advocates a wider use of tariffs combined with stricter immigration policy—supporters... Read More

Image: Rep. Ben Cline has introduced a bill eliminating the Federal Trade Commission.

Representative Ben Cline, apparently an ardent supporter of antitrust laws, has introduced a bill eliminating the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the independent federal agency that enforces the antitrust laws. Elon Musk, possibly the head of DOGE although it isn’t quite clear, is on board with the bill. Some have argued that the elimination of the... Read More

Image: Napheesa Collier celebrates a win with young WNBA fans.

Last October, the WNBA’s players opted out of their collective bargaining agreement. After very little news for months, stars like Napheesa Collier, Angel Reese, and DiJonai Carrington all indicated recently that the players will hold out if the WNBA doesn’t start paying the players better. The statements suggest a labor dispute might be coming to the... Read More

Image: Last September, then vice-presidential candidate JD Vance called out high egg prices under the Biden Administration (AP Photo).

Image: The Abundance Institute hosted a policy summit in May 2025.

Image: Six months after its creation, the Works Progress Administration employed about 2.7 million Americans.

Image: The FTC appears to be carrying the water for Elon Musk.

Image: Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez speak at a Fight Oligarchy rally. K.M. Cannon / Las Vegas Review-Journal / TNS via Getty Images file

By Gavin A. Sicard and Hal Singer June 13, 2025

Image: Last September, then vice-presidential candidate JD Vance called out high egg prices under the Biden Administration (AP Photo).

By Kenny Stancil June 2, 2025

Image: The Abundance Institute hosted a policy summit in May 2025.

By Hal Singer May 29, 2025

Image: Six months after its creation, the Works Progress Administration employed about 2.7 million Americans.

By Bryce Tuttle May 28, 2025

Image: The FTC appears to be carrying the water for Elon Musk.

By Hal Singer May 10, 2025

Image: Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez speak at a Fight Oligarchy rally. K.M. Cannon / Las Vegas Review-Journal / TNS via Getty Images file

By Dylan Gyauch-Lewis April 28, 2025

Image: The neoclassical school was a category originally used by Thorstein Veblen to group the Austrian school of thought with the “marginalists.”

By Daniel A. Hanley April 10, 2025

Image: Musk has usurped congressional power and initiated the dismantling of agencies like the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

By Mark Glick and Gabriel Lozada April 2, 2025

Image: The abandoned Bethlehem Steel plant's gas blowing room. (Source: Abandoned America)

By Darren Bush April 1, 2025

Image: Rep. Ben Cline has introduced a bill eliminating the Federal Trade Commission.

By David Berri March 27, 2025

Image: Napheesa Collier celebrates a win with young WNBA fans.

By Gavin A. Sicard and Hal Singer June 13, 2025

Image: Last September, then vice-presidential candidate JD Vance called out high egg prices under the Biden Administration (AP Photo).

Image: The Abundance Institute hosted a policy summit in May 2025.

Image: Six months after its creation, the Works Progress Administration employed about 2.7 million Americans.

Image: The FTC appears to be carrying the water for Elon Musk.

Image: Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez speak at a Fight Oligarchy rally. K.M. Cannon / Las Vegas Review-Journal / TNS via Getty Images file

Image: The neoclassical school was a category originally used by Thorstein Veblen to group the Austrian school of thought with the “marginalists.”

Image: Musk has usurped congressional power and initiated the dismantling of agencies like the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Image: The abandoned Bethlehem Steel plant's gas blowing room. (Source: Abandoned America)

Image: Rep. Ben Cline has introduced a bill eliminating the Federal Trade Commission.

Image: Napheesa Collier celebrates a win with young WNBA fans.

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By Gavin A. Sicard and Hal Singer
June 13, 2025

By Kenny Stancil
June 2, 2025

By Hal Singer
May 29, 2025

By Bryce Tuttle
May 28, 2025

By Hal Singer
May 10, 2025

By Dylan Gyauch-Lewis
April 28, 2025

By Daniel A. Hanley
April 10, 2025

By Mark Glick and Gabriel Lozada
April 2, 2025

By Darren Bush
April 1, 2025

By David Berri
March 27, 2025

By Gavin A. Sicard and Hal Singer
June 13, 2025