Here’s a letter that I sent today to Newsweek:
Robert Samuelson is correct: regardless of which party wins the White House or Congress, Uncle Sam is unlikely to get his fiscal affairs in order (“The Rise of Fantasy Politics,” September 1).
In principle, government’s core responsibility is to prevent Jones from benefiting by his imposing costs on Smith without Smith’s consent. In practice, government acts as Jones’s agent in securing benefits for Jones by imposing costs on Smith.
Government’s modus operandi today is to bestow goodies on politically powerful interest groups, and to pay for these goodies by taxing politically unpopular groups (e.g., oil companies) and politically impotent groups (most notably, future taxpayers). The bottom line is that, through government, Jones imposes costs on Smith without Smith’s consent.
Sincerely,
Donald J. Boudreaux
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The question is: how can we change the incentives for Members of Congress such that they no longer need or want or are able to hand out the goodies to their supporters or friends. Campaign finance reform anf term limits are unlikely to ever do much. So, I'd like to hear some other suggestions.
The following snippet from your letter is particularly relevant considering that McCain has apparently just selected Sarah Palin.
According to the AP:
So we have a presidential hopeful who knows nothing about economics selecting a vice presidential hopeful who knows nothing about economics….and we can now say that about either party.
The question is: how can we change the incentives for Members of Congress such that they no longer need or want or are able to hand out the goodies to their supporters or friends. Campaign finance reform anf term limits are unlikely to ever do much. So, I'd like to hear some other suggestions.
David T,
With the understanding that no suggestion made here has a shred of chance of ever being implemented in the foreseeable future. (God I hope I am being overly pessimistic)
Congress is not accountable to the people who elect it. Congresspersons are accountable solely to the system, each other.
The only way to impose accountability is to change the wording of Art 1, Sec 5, 2nd paragraph of the Constitution and impose working rules and standards upon Congress. This flaw in the Constitution is what makes all the corruption and waste possible.
Prof Boudreaux,
I came upon your Newsweek letter at The Austrian Economists' blog, of Peter Boettke and Steve Horwitz, and also the challenge to make the case for the free market in 800 or fewer words.
Here's my attempt at it:
Taking from the rich to give to the poor makes the poor poorer. For it doesn't just draw money but manpower downward upon the hierarchy of production, and the manpower faster than the money. For it doesn't merely follow money but anticipates it. And with manpower and competition among the poor increasing faster than the redistributed money, they'll be poorer than they would have been without it.
Not 800 words, not even 80.
@David T: "You'll never get the money out of politics until you get the politics out of the money"
The more power government has to make up rules the harder rent seekers will lobby.