What Happens When the ‘Indispensable Insider’ of Sacramento Steps Down?

Ana Matosantos Is a Once-in-a-Generation Financial Wizard. Without Her Sorcery, California Will Need a New Budget Whisperer

Send help, Harry Potter! Sacramento needs a new wizard!

Ana Matosantos has announced she is departing the Newsom administration at the end of the summer, telling the L.A. Times that she needs to sleep.

Can state government survive without her?

Unless you follow state politics closely, you’ve probably never heard of Matosantos, who doesn’t appear on television or give many on-the-record interviews. But for more than 15 years she has been an indispensable insider of Sacramento—depended upon by politicians, parties, and agencies of all varieties.

What makes her so important? The answer lies in …

To Rein in California’s Cops, Reclaim City Hall | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

To Rein in California’s Cops, Reclaim City Hall

Escalating Salaries, Benefits, and Pensions for Police Are Crowding Out Other Services Our State Badly Needs

When you hear cops reporting widespread looting in California, you should believe them. Because they are true experts. Indeed, for many decades, the most successful looters in our state have …

What George Bailey’s Building and Loan Company Can Still Teach Us About Banking

In His Time and Ours, Big Lenders Often Get a Pass, While Small Banks and the Communities They Serve Are Left Vulnerable

The bank run scene in It’s a Wonderful Life always makes me cry real tears. If you care about America, you should love the scene too—and not just because it …

Bitcoin Is an Energy-Wasting Ponzi Scheme

There Are Better Ways to Reap the Benefits of Digital Currencies—Without the Risk

Digital currencies, in their current form, should be prohibited by law. And not because they are a Ponzi scheme (which they are), and not because they can help facilitate criminal …

Want to Really Help Workers? Then Embrace Free Trade

Protectionist Barriers Won't Stop Robots from Taking U.S. Jobs

Ideas, innovation, exploration, and entrepreneurship make societies rich. When you buy something built elsewhere you are not just buying a fancy new object. You are importing ideas and innovation. When …