The Hill Archives - GeneMarks.com

The Hill

Sick of credit card swipe fees? Blame businesses, not the banks.

(This column originally appeared in The Hill) As a consumer, I have finally hit the wall when it comes to “swipe fees” on credit cards. That…

Gene MarksJune 10, 2026

The Hill

Bias, laziness and fear — why can’t today’s economists get it right?

(This column originally appeared in The Hill) Economists were wrong about inflation. They were wrong about tariffs. They were wrong about GDP growth and recessions and jobs and the labor market. But…

Gene MarksMay 19, 2026

The Hill

Why many Trump-supporting business owners hope Democrats win the midterms

(This column originally appeared in The Hill) A statistical platform called Race to the White House, which seeks to predict the outcome of every race in…

Gene MarksApril 10, 2026

The Hill

Despite all the economic doom and gloom, US small businesses are doing just fine

(This column originally appeared in The Hill) It’s easy to fall into the trap of believing that the economy is not doing well under the current…

Gene MarksMarch 12, 2026

The Hill

No one wants to admit the real reason corporations are laying off thousands

(This column originally appeared in The Hill) Everyone’s wringing their hands about the latest rounds of corporate layoffs. But no one is talking about the real…

Gene MarksFebruary 9, 2026

The Hill

Is there really an ‘affordability’ crisis?

(This column originally appeared in The Hill) I love to eat out, but man is it expensive! I feel like you can’t get a decent dinner…

Gene MarksJanuary 19, 2026

The Hill

Business doesn’t fear regulations — it fears the uncertainties they cause

(This column originally appeared in The Hill) Sometimes I wonder whether running a shop, restaurant or other small business during ancient times was easier than today.…

Gene MarksDecember 26, 2025

The Hill

Is inflation really so bad?

(This column originally appeared in The Hill) Inflation, inflation, inflation. We keep hearing how terrible it is, but is it really as bad as it seems?…

Gene MarksDecember 1, 2025

The Hill

All those corporate layoffs? Don’t blame AI.

(This column originally appeared in The Hill) Over the last few months, a number of well-known companies have announced layoffs of tens of thousands of workers. UPS said…

Gene MarksNovember 7, 2025

The Hill

All of these things are ‘killing’ small businesses — so why are they optimistic?

(This column originally appeared in The Hill) Wow, there are certainly a lot of things “killing” small businesses today, don’t you think? The Wall Street Journal says…

Gene MarksSeptember 25, 2025