Merrill Matthews, Ph.D., is a resident scholar with the Institute for Policy Innovation, a research-based, public policy “think tank.” He is a health policy expert and opinion contributor at The Hill. He also serves on the Texas Advisory Committee of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights.
Dr. Matthews is a past president of the Health Economics Roundtable for the National Association for Business Economics, the largest trade association of business economists. Dr. Matthews also served for 10 years as the medical ethicist for the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center’s Institutional Review Board for Human Experimentation, co-author of On the Edge: America Faces the Entitlements Cliff, and has contributed chapters to several books, including Physician Assisted Suicide: Expanding the Debate and The 21st Century Health Care Leader and Stop Paying the Crooks (on Medicare fraud).
He has been published in numerous journals and newspapers, including The Wall Street Journal, Investor’s Business Daily, Barron’s, USA Today, Forbes magazine and the Washington Times. He was an award-winning political analyst for the USA Radio Network.
Dr. Matthews received his Ph.D. in Humanities from the University of Texas at Dallas.
The Demise of the Wealth Effect (Audio: Interview)
Merrill Matthews joins Greg Truax OnThePoint radio show to discus his recent publications about the demise of the wealth effect and the consequences of our broken border.
Four Strikes and You're Out (Audio: Podcast)
IPI Resident Scholar Dr. Merrill Matthews discusses why labor actions and strikes have returned. Hint: Inflation, technological change, and a pro-union administration. With IPI President Tom Giovanetti.
Are Democrats Getting Mugged by Reality? (Audio: Podcast)
With the shocking news that the Biden administration has resumed building a border wall (!), IPI President Tom Giovanetti wonders if Democrats are finally getting mugged by the reality of the results of their policies. Tom talks about the border crisis, the crime spike, and persistent inflation with IPI Resident Scholar Dr. Merrill Matthews.
IPI Policy Basics: The Wealth Effect (Audio: Podcast)
IPI Resident Scholar Dr. Merrill Matthews explains the (mostly) psychological phenomenon of the Wealth Effect, which can accelerate either a good economy or a bad economy. And he uses “Bidenomics” as an illustration of an attempt to turn the reverse wealth effect into the wealth effect. With IPI President Tom Giovanetti.
Like a Recurring Bad Dream, Net Neutrality Is Back (Audio: Podcast)
IPI has been involved with the “net neutrality” debate from the very beginning almost two decades ago. And now with the Biden administration, it’s back. But what IS net neutrality, and why would it be harmful to the internet and to the US economy? IPI President Tom Giovanetti pontificates and IPI Resident Scholar Dr. Merrill Matthews patiently listens.
Lessons from Government Shutdowns (Audio: Podcast)
With a federal government shutdown looming, IPI Resident Scholar Dr. Merrill Matthews discusses his recent op/ed in The Hill reviewing the history of recent government shutdowns, and how the politics tends to play out. Hint: Republicans always get blamed. With IPI President Tom Giovanetti.
They Don't Make Strikes Like They Used To (Audio: Podcast)
With both Hollywood writers and United Auto Workers engaging in labor strikes, IPI President Tom Giovanetti and Resident Scholar Dr. Merrill Matthews discuss the declining power of labor unions, why unions strike during inflationary times, the Wage-Price Spiral, and the attitude conservatives should have toward labor unions.
The Ten New Rules of American Politics (Audio: Podcast)
IPI Resident Scholar Dr. Merrill Matthews leads a fascinating discussion about a recent analysis by Doug Sosnik of current and emerging trends among the American electorate. With IPI President Tom Giovanetti.
Can the 14th Amendment Block Trump's Aspirations? (Audio: Podcast)
The latest effort to keep Donald Trump from running for president is to invoke Section 3 of the Constitution's 14th Amendment which prohibits certain individuals who have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the government of the United States from holding high office. In this podcast, IPI's Addie Crimmins and Merrill Matthews discuss the historical roots of the 14th Amendment, the notion that it's provisions are "self-executing," and why this may be the worst idea yet for denying Trump's presidential aspirations.
All Eyes on Texas (Audio: Podcast)
Suspended Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's impeachment trial has drawn nationwide attention. In this podcast, Austin-based political analyst and Quorum Report editor Scott Braddock joins IPI's Addie Crimmins and Merrill Matthews to discuss ongoing developments in the Senate trial and how that may play out in the coming days.
Conservative Health Care Reforms Ready to Go (Audio: Podcast)
Galen Institute President Grace-Marie Turner joins IPI's Merrill Matthews to discuss various conservative health care reform proposals that, if passed, would provide people with more insurance-coverage options and patients with more freedom to choose the care that's best for them.
An Eyewitness Account of the Drawing of the Laffer Curve (Audio: Podcast)
The story of economist Art Laffer drawing what's come to be known as the Laffer Curve on a napkin in a Washington bar in 1974 has become legendary among free market advocates. In this podcast, Galen Institute President Grace-Marie Turner, who was one of three other people watching Laffer draw his graph, tells IPI's Merrill Matthews what happened—and why it's important.
IPI's Take on the First Republican Presidential Debate of 2024 (Audio: Podcast)
IPI Resident Scholar Dr. Merrill Matthews, Director of Development & Events Addie Crimmins, and President Tom Giovanetti share our thoughts and reactions to the first Republican Presidential Debate of the 2024 cycle. We discuss overall impression, FoxNews’ production, who helped themselves, who hurt themselves, and who surprised. And we wonder if our impressions reflect at all the impressions of today’s Republican Party.
The Gender Pay Numbers Game (Audio: Interview)
IPI Resident Scholar Dr. Merrill Matthews joins radio talk show host Bill Meyer (KMED) to run the numbers on the myth of the gender pay gap. When equalizing factors are added into the equation, the current gap reduces from the claimed 84 cents to a 1.5-cent pay gap. That’s a positive economic sign, but it won’t get much attention because some politicians need a big pay gap to demagogue.
Myth Busters: Income Inequality (Audio: Podcast)
Income inequality has become a progressive rallying cry, asserting that income inequality has exploded. Proponents claim government data show that the top 20% of workers earn 16.7 dollars for every dollar the bottom 20% earn. True? NO! A new book by former Senator Phil Gramm, Robert Ekelund and John Early explain that when all transfer payments to lower-income families are included, and when the taxes paid by higher-income families are excluded from income (because don't actually receive that money), the income inequality gap is a mere 4 to 1. On this IPI podcast, John Early, an economist who twice served as assistant commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistic, joins IPI Resident Scholar Merrill Matthews to discuss his book that demolishes the current income inequality hysterics.
Total Records: 704
