Here’s a letter to the Richmond (Indiana) Pal-Item:
State senator Allen Paul of Indiana’s District 27 observes that “Hoosiers in Senate District 27 have found that cities like Indianapolis and Cincinnati have large, national businesses who often submit lower contract prices to gain the upper-hand in area projects” (“‘Buy local’ moves to full Senate,” Feb. 15). To address this alleged problem, Sen. Paul introduced a bill that would, as the senator says, “help ensure local businesses and their products are considered in public works project contracts” – even if local governments can get lower prices from businesses outside of their locales.
In other words, Sen. Paul seeks legislation that would (to use your word) “encourage” local-government officials to bribe local businesses for political support while simultaneously forcing local citizens to over-pay for school construction, road repairs, and other government projects.
Such ‘buying local’ is also ‘buying loco.’
Sincerely,
Donald J. Boudreaux
(HT Nicolas Martin)