Randall G. Holcombe
Contributor
Randall G. Holcombe is DeVoe Moore Professor of Economics at Florida State University. He received his Ph.D. in economics from Virginia Tech, and taught at Texas A&M University and at Auburn University prior to coming to Florida State in 1988. Dr. Holcombe is also Senior Fellow at the James Madison Institute and is Senior Fellow at the Independent Institute in Oakland, California.
Dr. Holcombe is the author of twenty books and more than 200 articles published in academic and professional journals. His books include Political Capitalism: How Economic and Political Power Is Made and Maintained (2018) and Coordination, Cooperation, and Control: The Evolution of Economic and Political Power (2020).
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Highway Heist: The Development of America’s Road System
“James Bennett’s new book, Highway Heist, offers readers an excellent history of the politics and economics behind the development of the nation’s transportation network.” ~ Randall G. Holcombe
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Tribalism and Electoral Politics
“Humans still have those tribal instincts, and politicians can play them differently by defining who they include in their ‘us’ group and who they define as ‘them.’ Their strategies are fully intentional.” ~ Randall G. Holcombe
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Rethinking Regulatory Capture
“Stigler concluded that regulatory agencies are captured by the firms they regulate. Still, ultimately, it is the regulated firms that become captured by the legislators and regulators who have the power to terminate their regulatory protections.” ~ Randall G. Holcombe
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Biden’s Billionaire Tax Proposal
“The proposal just gives more ammunition to the extreme left in the Democratic Party—Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and their allies.” ~ Randall G. Holcombe
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Do Voters Make Poor Choices?
“The choices individuals make do not affect election outcomes. They make the choices that make them feel the best—and its difficult to say that by doing that, they are making bad choices.” ~ Randall G. Holcombe
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Political Preferences and Public Policy
“Citizens and voters have less influence over public policy than a romantic notion of democracy would suggest. The political elite tells voters what to think, and they fall in line behind their leaders.” ~ Randall G. Holcombe
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Why the Casual Attitude toward Inflation?
“The threat of inflation has been apparent for some time now, but those who have the power to do something about it seem to have the attitude that it will go away on its own.” ~ Randall G. Holcombe
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Biden’s Plan to “Tax The Rich” Will Cost the Middle Class
“With huge budget deficits, all it would take would be some future crisis for this tax to look like a good option to policy makers. And once the rich are subject to the tax, you will be next.” ~ Randall G. Holcombe
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To Mask, Or Not? Should I Yield to Authoritarians Who Resist Authority?
“I work at a state university that is actively opposing the policy of those above them in the hierarchy of state government. Should I yield to these anti-authoritarian authoritarians and wear a mask?” ~ Randall G. Holcombe
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Is Our Current Inflation Temporary? Look at the Numbers
“John Williams, the New York Fed President, is expecting 3% inflation this year. I’m expecting inflation in 2021 to be above 5%. In six months, we’ll be able to look at the actual numbers and see whose estimate was closer.” ~ Randall G. Holcombe
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•
Highway Heist: The Development of America’s Road System
“James Bennett’s new book, Highway Heist, offers readers an excellent history of the politics and economics behind the development of the nation’s transportation network.” ~ Randall G. Holcombe
-
•
Tribalism and Electoral Politics
“Humans still have those tribal instincts, and politicians can play them differently by defining who they include in their ‘us’ group and who they define as ‘them.’ Their strategies are fully intentional.” ~ Randall G. Holcombe
-
•
Rethinking Regulatory Capture
“Stigler concluded that regulatory agencies are captured by the firms they regulate. Still, ultimately, it is the regulated firms that become captured by the legislators and regulators who have the power to terminate their regulatory protections.” ~ Randall G. Holcombe
-
•
Biden’s Billionaire Tax Proposal
“The proposal just gives more ammunition to the extreme left in the Democratic Party—Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and their allies.” ~ Randall G. Holcombe
-
•
Do Voters Make Poor Choices?
“The choices individuals make do not affect election outcomes. They make the choices that make them feel the best—and its difficult to say that by doing that, they are making bad choices.” ~ Randall G. Holcombe
-
•
Political Preferences and Public Policy
“Citizens and voters have less influence over public policy than a romantic notion of democracy would suggest. The political elite tells voters what to think, and they fall in line behind their leaders.” ~ Randall G. Holcombe
-
•
Why the Casual Attitude toward Inflation?
“The threat of inflation has been apparent for some time now, but those who have the power to do something about it seem to have the attitude that it will go away on its own.” ~ Randall G. Holcombe
-
•
Biden’s Plan to “Tax The Rich” Will Cost the Middle Class
“With huge budget deficits, all it would take would be some future crisis for this tax to look like a good option to policy makers. And once the rich are subject to the tax, you will be next.” ~ Randall G. Holcombe
-
•
To Mask, Or Not? Should I Yield to Authoritarians Who Resist Authority?
“I work at a state university that is actively opposing the policy of those above them in the hierarchy of state government. Should I yield to these anti-authoritarian authoritarians and wear a mask?” ~ Randall G. Holcombe
-
•
Is Our Current Inflation Temporary? Look at the Numbers
“John Williams, the New York Fed President, is expecting 3% inflation this year. I’m expecting inflation in 2021 to be above 5%. In six months, we’ll be able to look at the actual numbers and see whose estimate was closer.” ~ Randall G. Holcombe