George Washington University law professor and economist Neil Buchanan discusses what we should expect from the people whom we hire to teach our children and dispels the notion of the “superstar” teacher.

George Washington University law professor and economist Neil Buchanan discusses the importance of civilian leadership of law enforcement and describes the dangers of an “us-against-them” mentality among law enforcement officers.

George Washington law professor and economist Neil Buchanan describes the starkly different political responses to the revelation of wrongdoing by the IRS earlier this year, and the more recent Senate Intelligence Committee’s “torture report.” Buchanan argues that this contrast illustrates how politicians too often overreact to non-news yet refuse to respond to truly horrifying news.

George Washington law professor and economist Neil Buchanan argues that Republicans in Congress have effectively used budget issues to set a trap to impeach the President, but that they might well regret setting that trap.

George Washington University law professor and economist Neil Buchanan explains why recent events detracting from the Affordable Care Act might lead to serious consideration of a single-payer health care system. Buchanan includes in his discussion the Supreme Court’s recent decision in NFIB v. Sebelius, a careless statement by economist Jonathan Gruber, and the upcoming challenge of it before the Supreme Court, King v. Burwell.

George Washington University law professor and economist Neil Buchanan argues that anti-government ideologues deny facts in order to support their theories of the economy.

George Washington law professor and economist Neil Buchanan argues that to effectively combat economic inequality, the government must employ both progressive taxation and progressive spending.

George Washington law professor and economist Neil Buchanan explains how the Ebola crisis highlights the dangerous consequences of demonizing the government.

George Washington University law professor and economist Neil Buchanan discusses a recent ruling by a California superior court judge striking down that state’s tenure system for public school teachers. Buchanan explains why the ruling lacks adequate basis and argues that tenure is actually an essential part of attracting and retaining talented teachers.

George Washington University law professor and economist Neil Buchanan comments on the minor nationwide debate over reclining one’s seat on an airplane. Buchanan argues that one reporter’s claim that the debate is “an excellent case study for the Coase Theorem” manifests a fundamental (yet common) misunderstanding of that theorem.

George Washington University law professor and economist Neil Buchanan explains why cash payments to college athletes does not solve the problems plaguing college athletics.

George Washington University law professor and economist Neil Buchanan explains why college sports should be treated as a source of funding for their nonprofit universities rather than as for-profit businesses.

George Washington University law professor and economist Neil Buchanan argues against the notion that Social Security will “go broke” before today’s workers retire. Buchanan discusses the origins of the idea—including disinformation campaigns by opponents of Social Security—and explains why the is unfounded, as long as people continue to support the program politically.

George Washington University law professor and economist Neil Buchanan discusses the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores Inc., particularly whether it effectively compels all companies to adopt beliefs to increase profits and fulfill their fiduciary duties to their owners. Buchanan predicts that either we will see an increasing number of companies take this route to maximize profits, or we will want to investigate why more companies are not pursuing this attractive route to free market salvation.

George Washington law professor and economist Neil Buchanan explains why large numbers of people continue to believe erroneously that tax cuts result in greater tax revenues. Buchanan argues that the only real-life examples that seem to support the notion are cherry-picked and anecdotal evidence. He concludes that the claim that tax cuts are self-financing is only barely plausible as a matter of logic, and it has been disproven over and over again by both conservative and liberal economists alike.

In this second of a two-part series of columns on income mobility, George Washington law professor and economist Neil Buchanan explains why we should focus on reducing economic inequality today. Buchanan warns that our focus should not be on the increased rate at which economic inequality is growing, but on its very existence. He argues that even if inequality were gradually abating on its own, as some have postulated, inactively waiting for it to do so would continue to allow millions of people to suffer the pain of poverty until that distant and hypothetical time arrives.

George Washington University law professor and economist Neil Buchanan critiques the argument that income mobility adequately addresses the issue of economic inequality. Buchanan contends that supporters of the mobility argument rely on a theory of mobility that disregards the reality of the permanent effects that poverty has on people. In a companion column next week, Buchanan will discuss where the arguments that Professor Piketty offered in his book Capital in the Twenty-First Century fit into the arguments over inequality, mobility, and redistribution.

Neil Buchanan, a law professor and economist at George Washington University Law School, critiques the so-called IRS scandal of 2013 and one conservative law professor’s persistent attempts to paint it as something it is not. Buchanan explains why the story never amounted to a scandal at all and posits that a recent op-ed by that professor arguing otherwise undermines the reputation of that that professor’s blog as a nonpartisan source of tax-related news.

Justia columnist, George Washington law professor, and economist Neil Buchanan comments on the responses by many conservatives to Thomas Piketty’s Book Capital in the Twenty-First Century. Buchanan argues that the negative reception by conservatives reveals more about them than about Piketty or his allies.

Justia columnist, George Washington law professor, and economist Neil Buchanan sharply critiques the notion of “Tax Freedom Day” and the underlying idea that paying taxes constitutes forced servitude to the government. Buchanan describes the origins of that line of thinking and explains why, if taken to its logical conclusion, it makes no sense.