That’s my topic in the Washington Post today.
In it I mention Senator Vance’s advocacy of deregulation to cut the cost of housing and regulatory changes to make childbirth free. Since I submitted the piece to the Post, he has also come out for a $5,000-per-child tax credit. All of this is very good (although that last idea is going to require more serious budgeting than either party is used to) because our low birth rates — which are lower than what Americans say they want — are a reason for concern, and these reforms could help on the margin.
I don’t think Vance’s “childless cat ladies” comments, as helpful as they may have been to him during that phase of his political career, have done this agenda any favors. Pro-natalism faces a lot of obstacles — but too many of them, I argue, are self-inflicted.