Discourse

Discourse

Home
Business and Economics
Culture and Society
Ideas
Politics
About
Masthead

Business and Economics

The Left’s Sudden About-Face on Portable Benefits for Contractors
On the question of independent contractor protection, a once-promising road of bipartisanship faces the wrecking ball of politics as usual
 • 
C. Jarrett Dieterle
The Unseen Industries in the Independent Contractor Debate
The designation of employee vs. contractor affects far more than just gig workers
 • 
C. Jarrett Dieterle
A New Arkansas Law Puts Pharmacies Before Patients
The statute is intended to protect small pharmacies from larger corporations, but at serious costs to consumers
 • 
Satya Marar
Trade Strategies and Development Fallacies
Whether countries pursue outward-looking trade strategies or seek domestic dominance over production and consumption, development works best when it’s…
 • 
Dr. Kimberlee Josephson
Understanding the ‘Wealthy Working Class’
Affluent Americans care more about the quality of their consumption than its quantity
 • 
Domenico Ferraro
Ending the Independent Contractor Debate
It’s time for state and federal lawmakers to embrace a portable benefits model, which will both preserve the flexibility of gig work and protect…
 • 
C. Jarrett Dieterle
Motherhood and the Shape of New Work
An increasingly flexible labor market has helped more women join the workforce, but there are still labor policy reforms to be made
 • 
Liya Palagashvili
 and 
Susannah Petitt
What DOGE Ought To Do With Social Security
The agency should focus on recommending reforms to make the program more efficient and effective
 • 
Charles Blahous
The United States Needs To Pivot on Trade
The administration’s inconsistent tariff policies are creating dangerous levels of uncertainty that will harm the U.S. economy
The Stupidest Trade War
Trump’s trade war comprehensively demonstrates the follies of protectionism
 • 
Robert Tracinski
2
A FinReg Backtrack Brings Good News for Small Business
A new deregulatory push in the financial regulation arena will help small businesses and family farms
 • 
C. Jarrett Dieterle
Medicaid Needs Commonsense, Cost-Saving Reforms
Instead of attacking lawmakers for ‘cutting Medicaid,’ Americans should support prudent reforms to strengthen its finances and target its resources…
 • 
Charles Blahous
© 2025 The Mercatus Center
Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start writingGet the app
Substack is the home for great culture