In his state of the union address, President Biden expressed his desire for a $400 a month tax credit over two years for first time home buyers. I have argued for years that tax credits are a good thing, and still maintain that they are a good thing. Yet, I am leery of Biden’s tax-credit proposal.Biden’s proposal was one of several relating to housing:I know the cost of housing is so important to you.If inflation keeps coming down mortgage rates will come down as well.But I’m not waiting.I want to provide an annual tax credit that will give Americans $400 a month for the next two years as mortgage rates come down to put toward their mortgage when they buy a first home or trade up for a little more space.My Administration is also eliminating title insurance fees for federally backed

Conservatives are upset that the U.S. Military Academy—West Point—has removed the phrase “Duty, Honor, and Country” from its mission statement.The phrase comes from a farewell address that retired general Douglas MacArthur—who attended West Point from 1899 to 1903—delivered to West Point cadets in 1962. The old mission statement was first formally adopted by the Academy in 1998.The change was announced in a letter from West Point superintendent Lieutenant General Steven Gilland. The new mission statement reads: “To build, educate, train, and inspire the Corps of Cadets to be commissioned leaders of character committed to the Army Values and ready for a lifetime of service to the Army and Nation.”According to the U.S. Army, its values are loyalty, duty, respect, selfless

Should employers have the right to discriminate in hiring on the basis of obesity? The Washington State Supreme Court recently ruled that “it is illegal for employers in Washington to refuse to hire qualified potential employees because the employer perceives them to be obese.”

Malcolm D. Magee’s new book on Woodrow Wilson examines a much-neglected topic: the role of Wilson’s religion in his enthusiasm for war and his goal to “conquer, convert, and change the nations.”This audio Mises Daily is narrated by Dianna Keiler.