A Government-Controlled Economy

With the federal government about to take majority ownership of GM by the end of the week, it's imperative that we as a nation examine the unprecedented role our government is taking in private industry.

The Washington Times sums it up like this:

The takeover, which is the most extensive federal intervention into the operations of a major industrial company, follows in quick succession a government-assisted bankruptcy reorganization of Chrysler LLC, the assumption of partial ownership of two of the nation's biggest banks -- Citigroup and Bank of America -- and the seizure of mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as well as insurance goliath American International Group Inc.

That's quite a portfolio.

According to William Boyes, an economics professor at the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University, "the government now owns or controls businesses that generate about one-third of U.S. economic activity."

It's shocking to see the ever-expanding role that government is taking over the private sector under the guise of crisis. The White House says it wishes it didn't have to do what it did, and that it is acting to save the economy from total collapse. Time will tell how genuine that “duress” was.

But in the mean time, the private economy as we once knew it has radically changed.

As Mr. Boyes notes: "I didn't think I would ever see the United States move to a primarily government-controlled economy, and its happened in just a few months."

We need to assess whether the actions of the government are working now and whether they are really in the best interest of our nation and future generations of Americans.