In our democracy there’s a huge incentive for people to vote for benefits (money, credit, patronage) they do not have to pay for. These incentives create huge inefficiencies in our economy. Thus, Porter writes, it’s unlikely Elon Musk or anyone will be able to reduce government spending – and Social Security will disappear.
Porter reminds readers of the tariff, enacted more than 100 years ago, that decimated farmers and that set in motion the economic forces that led directly to the Great Depression. Sadly, he says, the current administration seems not to have learned from what history taught us.
A president threatening to set up a second revenue agency for the federal government isn’t good news. It’s horrifying, Porter reports, on the news that the incoming Trump administration has proposed an External Revenue Service.