Some things are easier to visualize than others. Visualizing the portion of our income that is taken in taxes, for example, is relatively straightforward. First the money was there, and then it went somewhere else. But what about money that was never there in the first place? As a result of the burden of overregulation, hundreds of billions of dollars …

The latest jobs numbers are in, and the Obama administration is hardly ending on a high note.

According to a new study from the American Action Forum, the over $700 billion in regulatory costs imposed by the federal government since 2008 are driving a massive divide between big business and the rest of us.

In median income, poverty rates, labor participation, as well as food stamp usage, we find that Puerto Ricans on the mainland fare far better than Puerto Ricans on the island. Still, the ones who use more food stamps are those on the island, not the mainland. The true culprit is not a lack of welfare, but a lack of economic freedom on the island.

In many states across the country, courts are unable to provide public defenders and translators for defendants who can’t afford their own, according to recent research by Pew Charitable Trusts.

At first glance, it seems that there are some in Washington who want to cut red tape and ease the regulatory burden on businesses, while others want closer scrutiny and oversight from regulators.

Time and again, politicians in Washington have a habit of falling into a familiar trap: if at first you don’t succeed… just throw more money at the problem. The so-called ‘War on Poverty,’ first declared by Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964, is a textbook example.

It is a time of giving and sharing with those we love and those who are less fortunate. But what is the role of the government in this?

Apparently, our beloved American traditions are under threat from plagues and the rising cost of living.