In this episode of The Economist Next Door, host Paul Mueller is joined by AIER colleagues Tom Savidge and Julia Cartwright to examine one of the most persistent claims in American politics: that billionaires pay little or nothing in federal taxes while ordinary workers carry the burden.

The conversation breaks down the federal tax system — including taxes on income, capital gains, corporate earnings, and payrolls — showing why headlines about the ultra-wealthy often obscure reality. Along the way, the scholars explain why high-income earners still account for a disproportionate share of federal revenue even as the code contains a maze of deductions, exemptions, credits, and loopholes.

The scholars explore the deeply convoluted — and often regressive — nature of the tax system, including the compliance costs, incentives, and distortions it creates for workers, investors, and entrepreneurs alike. The discussion touches on the "Bootleggers and Baptists" dynamic in tax policy, where moral arguments about fairness often align with the interests of well-connected groups that benefit from preserving complexity and special carveouts. The episode also examines the Laffer Curve and the idea that excessively high tax rates can discourage productive activity and ultimately reduce economic growth and tax revenue.

What would a simpler, less distortionary tax system look like? And why is meaningful reform so difficult? Listen and find out!

What is the Austrian school of economics—and why does it still shape debates about markets, money, and government today? In this episode of The Economist Next Door, host Paul Mueller is joined by economists Pete Earle and Jeff Degner to break down one of the most influential—and controversial—traditions in economic thought.

From the marginal revolution to modern debates over central banking, they explore how Austrian economists think about prices, knowledge, and human behavior. The conversation covers the socialist calculation debate, the role of interest rates in boom-bust cycles, and why ideas from Mises and Hayek continue to resonate in business, finance, and policy circles today. It also asks a provocative question: Who is the greatest economist to ever live?

In this episode of The Economist Next Door, host Paul Mueller is joined by AIER colleagues Lydia Mashburn Newman and Pete Earle to discuss the 2008 financial crisis, from the collapse of Bear Stearns to the failure of Lehman Brothers and the emergency response to AIG.

They examine how shifting government actions created uncertainty during the crisis, and how the Federal Reserve's response—near-zero interest rates, liquidity facilities, and large-scale asset purchases—transformed monetary policy and reshaped financial markets for the next decade.

How do these monetary decisions and decimal points affect the everyday lives of Americans? Listen and find out!

In this episode of The Economist Next Door, host Paul Mueller speaks with Jeff Degner and Aidan Grogan about the global fertility crisis and the sharp decline in family formation across advanced economies. Are falling birth rates primarily an affordability problem—or the result of deeper cultural changes?

The conversation connects inflation, housing costs, and economic uncertainty with delayed marriage, shifting fertility preferences, and the emergence of dating apps as large-scale matching platforms that alter incentives, selection, and relationship formation. The discussion also introduces the concept of an "inflation culture" and its potential effects on time preference, planning horizons, and family decisions.

The episode closes by examining what population decline means for economic growth, social cohesion, and the future of government.

In this episode of The Economist Next Door, host Paul Mueller sits down with Nobel Prize–winning economist Vernon Smith to explore how markets actually work—and how people really behave within them.

Smith, who received the Nobel Prize in Economics in 2002 for pioneering experimental economics, explains how simple market experiments reveal powerful truths: prices emerge from decentralized interactions, markets converge toward equilibrium even with limited information, and people learn quickly through exchange and experience.

The conversation goes beyond economics into philosophy, drawing on Adam Smith's The Theory of Moral Sentiments and The Wealth of Nations. Smith argues that economic order is rooted in moral psychology, social norms, and bottom-up rules formed through everyday human interaction.

From asset bubbles to spontaneous order, this episode offers a deeper look at markets not just as engines of wealth, but as systems of discovery, learning, and human cooperation.

SHOW NOTES

WN - ​An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations [Cannan Edition (Vol. 1 & 2)](https://oll.libertyfund.org/titles/smith-an-inquiry-into-the-nature-and-causes-of-the-wealth-of-nations-cannan-ed-in-2-vols

TMS - https://www.econlib.org/library/Smith/smMS.html

Nobel lecture - https://digitalcommons.chapman.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=&httpsredir=1&article=1061&context=esi_pubs

Bubbles, Crashes, and Endogenous Expectations in Experimental Spot Asset Markets - https://www.academia.edu/17750757/Bubbles_Crashes_and_Endogenous_Expectations_in_Experimental_Spot_Asset_Markets

Asset Bubbles, Learning and Information - https://www.academia.edu/17767320/Stock_market_bubbles_in_the_laboratory

How does the US produce its energy, and why does regulation sometimes get in the way of innovation? Paul Mueller chats with Julia Cartwright and Ryan Yonk to break down energy policy, electricity grids, and the future of nuclear, renewables, and fossil fuels in America.

The scholars explore how market forces, government decisions, and consumer choices shape the energy we rely on every day—and why understanding these dynamics matters for both affordability and innovation.

In this episode of The Economist Next Door, host Paul Mueller is joined by AIER research fellows Thomas Savidge and Julia Cartwright to examine the push for wealth taxes in the United States and around the world.

They explain how wealth taxes differ from traditional taxes on income and consumption, and what history reveals about their real-world effects. Drawing on examples from California, New York, and Europe, the discussion highlights capital flight, revenue volatility, and the unintended consequences of taxing accumulated wealth.

The episode also tackles common claims about billionaires "not paying their fair share," unpacks the complexity of the tax code, and explains why taxes aimed at the ultra-wealthy rarely stay confined to their original targets.

From the Smaug fallacy to the Tiebout Effect, the conversation introduces listeners to the economic ideas behind the debate—and shows how a seemingly "common sense" policy can carry serious consequences for growth, investment, and living standards.