Politicians seem to love economics, especially when it tells them that they don’t have to pass laws that would irritate the powerful corporate interests that make big campaign contributions. The argument is repeated like a mantra: Any effort to regulate protection for consumers will simply drive up costs and hurt consumers in the long run. In short, markets impose perfect discipline, the world is a cruel place, and there’s no way for government to make it better. (Notice how this fits with Grover Norquist’s goal to make government small enough to be drowned in the bathtub.)
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://talkingpointsmemo.com/?p=1250024