More Government = More Corruption
My Democratic friends correctly argue that Republicans have a corruption problem and my GOP friends correctly argue that Democrats have a corruption problem.
I wish both sides would recognize that the real problem is big government.
As I wrote last year, “unethical people are naturally drawn to politics and unethical interest groups naturally seek to obtain unearned wealth (a process known as “rent seeking“).”
And I shared lots of examples.
This is true for tax policy.- And I mean very true for tax policy.
- This is true for trade policy.
- This is true for bailout policy.
- This is true for regulatory policy.
- This is true for spending policy.
- This is true for health policy.
- This is true for business policy.
- And it’s true for environment policy.
Today, let’s review some wise – and blunt – analysis from Steven Greenhut.
In an article for Reason, he connects the dots to show that the level of corruption is linked to the size and power of government.
Whenever some astounding corruption scandal explodes onto the front pages, the public is aghast and policymakers cobble together new reforms that promise to keep such outrages from occurring again. …Soon enough, however, we learn about new abuses—or some other scandal grabs the headlines.
…corruption is inherent in a system where officials dole out public money and regulate almost everything we do. …The most corrupt nations are, of course, those where dictators, politburos, bureaucrats and security officials can do as they please—and where lowly citizens lack the right to free speech or due process. Our current government may be a far cry from the one the founders designed, but it attempts to limit government power, which is the main source of corruption. …corruption fundamentally is a problem of government power, as official actors use immense powers to help themselves and their allies. If we want less corruption, the solution is obvious: We need less government.
Amen. When government’s footprint is smaller, there’s less opportunity for graft.
The moral of the story is that Washington’s revolving door of legal corruption needs to be welded shut.
Thought that may be too much to hope for.
So maybe a more realistic goal is to simply not add more grease to the door so it spins even faster.
Perhaps we can learn from Estonia?
P.S. Today’s column focus on what small government is a good goal if we want less corruption, but don’t forget that there is also a very strong economic case for smaller government.
California is the Greece of the USA, but Texas is not perfect either!!!
Just Because California Is Terrible, that Doesn’t Mean Texas Is Perfect
January 21, 2013 by Dan Mitchell
Texas is in much better shape than California. Taxes are lower, in part because Texas has no state income tax.
No wonder the Lone Star State is growing faster and creating more jobs.
And the gap will soon get even wider since California voters recently decided to drive away more productive people by raising top tax rates.
But a key challenge for all governments is controlling the size and cost of bureaucracies.
Government employees are probably overpaid in both states, but the situation is worse in California, as I discuss in this interview with John Stossel.
Dan Mitchell Comparing Excessive Bureaucrat Compensation in Texas and California
But being better than California is not exactly a ringing endorsement of Texas fiscal policy.
A column in today’s Wall Street Journal, written by the state’s Comptroller of Public Accounts, points out some worrisome signs.
As the chief financial officer of the nation’s second-largest state, even I have found it hard to get a handle on how much governments are spending, and how much debt they’re taking on. Every level of government is piling up incredible bills. And they’re coming due, whether we like it or not. Even in low-tax Texas, property taxes have risen three times faster than the inflation rate and four times faster than our population growth since 1992. Our local governments, meanwhile, more than doubled their debt load in the last decade, to more than $7,500 in debt for every man, woman and child in the state. In Houston alone, city-employee pension plans are facing an unfunded liability of $2.4 billion. But too many taxpayers aren’t given the information they need to make informed decisions when they vote debt issues. Recently I spent several months holding about 40 town-hall meetings with Texans across our state. Each time, I asked the attendees if they could tell me how much debt their local governments are carrying. Not a single person in a single town had this information.
In other words, taxpayers need to be eternally vigilant, regardless of where they live. Otherwise the corrupt rectangle of politicians, bureaucrats, lobbyists, and interest groups will figure out hidden ways of using the political process to obtain unearned wealth.
P.S. The second-most-viewed post on this blog is this joke about Texas, California, and a coyote, so it must be at least somewhat amusing. If you want some Texas-specific humor, this police exam is amusing and you’ll enjoy this joke about the difference between Texans, liberals and conservatives. And if you want California-specific humor, this Chuck Asay cartoon hits the nail on the head.
The Daily Hatch 