John Berlau

Alexandria

Director, Finance Policy at The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI)

Director of Finance Policy, @ceidotorg Opinionator, @Forbes Author of @StMartinsPress book George Washington, Entrepreneur. Speaker at events. My own views.

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Articles

Regulators right to approve Capital One/Discover merger

3 days ago | cei.org | John Berlau |Ryan Smith

On Friday, federal financial regulators made the right decision in approving the merger of Capital One and Discover. In their joint approvals of the merger, the Federal Reserve and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) seemed to recognize points made by CEI in its favor. Namely that, far from being anticompetitive, the merger could introduce new, game-changing competition into the markets for credit and payments.
Paul Atkins is an excellent choice to lead the SEC

1 week ago | cei.org | John Berlau

On Wednesday, the Senate confirmed Paul S. Atkins to serve as chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). As I have stated before, Atkins is an excellent choice to serve in this position with a proven record of standing up for good policy during his previous tenure as an SEC commissioner.
President Trump announces Executive Orders aimed at slashing overregulation within federal agencies: CEI analysis

2 weeks ago | cei.org | Clyde Wayne Crews |James Broughel |John Berlau

On Wednesday, President Trump announced several Executive Orders aimed at slashing overregulation in federal agencies through sunsetting and repealing outdated or unnecessary rules. The Orders focus on regulations that were deemed “unlawful” following recent Supreme Court decisions as well as rules that stifled energy independence and competition. CEI experts applauded the Trump administration’s deregulatory initiatives. CEI Fred L.
House poised to end Biden-era CFPB overdraft rule: CEI statement

2 weeks ago | cei.org | John Berlau

The House is expected today to vote on a Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution overturning a Biden era Consumer Financial Protection Bureau rule to cap overdraft fees at $5 for banks and credit unions (over a certain threshold). CEI financial policy expert John Berlau urges the House to overturn this rule, explaining that such price controls would add to market volatility.
John Berlau - Competitive Enterprise Institute

3 weeks ago | cei.org | John Berlau

The House is expected today to vote on a Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution overturning a Biden era Consumer Financial Protection Bureau rule to cap…
Pathologies of the Plague – Rachel Lu

3 weeks ago | lawliberty.org | Rachel Lu |John Grove |Jodi Bruhn |John Berlau

The Black Death marked an interesting turning point in European history. It was of course a monumental tragedy, killing as much as half of the entire population of fourteenth-century Europe, inflicting terror and suffering on an unimaginable scale. If you managed to survive it, your chances of thriving in the post-plague world were relatively good. With so much newly available land and resources, science and agriculture saw significant advances.
When Rules Replace Trust – Richard Smith

3 weeks ago | lawliberty.org | Barry Lam |Richard Smith |Jodi Bruhn |John Berlau

It’s late winter as I write this review, and Elon Musk is on a rampage at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Stomping around like the proverbial bull in a china shop, he’s canceling contracts, firing government employees, and shutting down entire departments of the federal government. And why? Part of the reason is cost.
The Rules and the Game – John G. Grove

4 weeks ago | lawliberty.org | John Grove |Jodi Bruhn |John Berlau |George Hawley

Of all the signs of spring, none is as exciting and as American as baseball’s Opening Day. Yet recently, each new season has come with fresh complaints about the sport. It’s definitely not dying as some argue. But neither is its popularity rising. Many commentators and casual fans are concerned that the sport is too “boring” for modern audiences. And while more devoted fans would probably contest that description, there is a sense that something is amiss with the way the game is currently played.
Reductive Humanity – John O. McGinnis

4 weeks ago | lawliberty.org | Yuval Harari |John O. McGinnis |Jodi Bruhn |John Berlau

Since the Greek pre-Socratic philosopher Thales proclaimed that everything was water, ambitious theorists have sought a single element capable of explaining the physical or social world. For Karl Marx, history unfolded through the dynamics of class struggle.
A Teaching Moment – Michael Q. McShane

4 weeks ago | lawliberty.org | Michael Q. McShane |Jodi Bruhn |John Berlau |George Hawley

The passing of time has a funny way of playing with our memories. The coronavirus pandemic particularly distorted our perception, as days of monotonous isolation ran into each other, flattening weeks or months (or even years depending on where one lived). But even absent such a disorienting event, we humans tend to look back with rose-colored glasses and conflate what we know now with what we knew then.