Travis Nix writes about what the Senate can do for tax relief:

Indeed, the Senate, despite its Democratic majority, may offer Americans more hope for economic relief. Right now, there are several tax treaties waiting for Senate approval. These treaties would help American businesses save billions by removing the risk that other countries would double tax their hard-earned profits, but they have never even been voted on. Why? Because Senator Rand Paul (R., Ky.) is standing in the way. He is concerned about information-sharing provisions included in the treaties that would help the IRS gain information on foreign bank accounts potentially used for tax evasion. He believes that this violates privacy rights.
But the benefits of the treaties far outweigh any potential harm. Tax treaties are agreements that the United States signs with other countries to reduce the risk that American businesses will have their profits taxed twice by each country. The United States has ratified over 60 such treaties, to the great benefit of American businesses, who can use the money that they save to reinvest in the United States. The treaties also reduce the costs of foreign businesses entering the U.S. market, providing Americans with many good-paying jobs. In short, tax treaties are a win-win for both the U.S. and the countries we sign them with.

I write about a letter from 21 state attorneys general to proxy advisory firms that use ESG criteria when advising state investment vehicles:

Proxy advisory firms exist to tell investors how to vote their shares. They are especially important to large institutional investors, such as state pension funds, that own too many stocks to be able to keep track of every question presented to shareholders. Those large institutional investors also control enough shares to swing votes for publicly traded companies.
There’s nothing wrong with proxy advisory firms in principle: They represent a logical application of the division of labor. However, there are only two major proxy advisory firms, ISS and Glass Lewis, and almost every fund is advised by one of them, so groupthink can take hold easily. With the rise of mutual funds and index funds, in addition to existing large public funds, their power has grown significantly in the past few decades, and they don’t own any of the shares that they are indirectly voting.
The attorneys general allege in the letter that by advocating criteria related to climate change and diversity, equity, and inclusion when advising state investment vehicles, ISS and Glass Lewis could be in violation of their contracts with state governments and the law.