Opinion

When members of the White House staff find themselves under criminal investigation, they should be allowed to raise money for their legal defense. They should not be allowed, as a newly revised policy from the Office of Government Ethics permits, to accept contributions from anonymous donors. The cost of public service is sometimes unreasonable, occasionally outrageous, and extracted from members ...

Back in April, I wrote about one of the most troubling mysteries in economics, the falling labor share. Less of the income the economy produces is going to people who work, and more is going to people who own things. This trend is worrying because it contributes to increased inequality—poor people own much less of the land and capital in ...

What’s the most important innovation behind the rise of renewable energy: Taller wind turbines? Smart power grids? Spray-on solar cells? None of the above. For all the advances made by engineers that cut the cost of solar modules and new wind generation by more than half in five years, the true heroes of the renewables revolution may be a group ...

There’s a hard truth to understand for the many Catalans who intend to vote for independence on October 1: Regardless of the legality of their vote, its result can only stand if they are ready to fight for it — and if they can win in a violent conflict. As things stand before the independence referendum, Catalonia and Spain are ...

When you discount the rhetorical overkill, the most surprising thing about Donald Trump’s address to the United Nations on Tuesday was how conventional it was. He supported human rights and democracy; he opposed rogue regimes; he espoused a global community of strong, sovereign nations. Pretty shocking stuff. Because he’s Trump, the zingers got the headlines: He repeated his childish, snarky ...

It has been 10 years since the last financial crisis, and some have already started to predict that the next one is near. But when it comes, it will likely have its roots in Silicon Valley, not Wall Street. The world of finance looks very different today than it did 10 years ago. In 2007, our biggest concern was “too ...

Now should be among the best of times to find a job. So why are so many Americans still not working? The answer might have something to do with the way employers hire. Demand for workers looks as strong as it has ever been. The US job openings rate stood at 4 percent in July, matching the highest point on ...

If polls are correct, Angela Merkel is on track to win a record fourth term as German chancellor on September 24. The temptation, after such a long run of electoral success, is to keep the formula unchanged and carry on giving the voters what they want. The trouble is, what makes sense for Germany and its people isn’t quite what’s ...

The Republicans are making yet another run at repealing Obamacare, this time with a bill sponsored by Republican senators Lindsey Graham, of South Carolina, and Bill Cassidy, of Louisiana. While this legislation doesn’t seem workable in its current form, as the old saying about Richard Wagner’s music goes, the bill is in some respects “better than it sounds.” Think of ...

Whether you think of subprime mortgages or auto loans, there is little doubt that consumers were the symbol of the 2008 financial crisis. Since then, households have gone through a painful process of deleveraging, as central banks kept interest rates at rock bottom to help them pay back their debts. The same isn’t true for companies. As monetary authorities edge ...