This is the third installment of a series entitled Potomac Fever contributed by Richard Smith and Steve Johnson. The chart below provides a format for problem solving The first step is to define the problem. In this series, we begin with defining the terms. Follow us on our journey.
Progressive liberals are a group of politicians who adopt an ideology commonly called Progressive Liberalism. We will look at the characteristics that are identified by this political group.
There exist significant studies that characterize the identity of a typical liberal. Adding the term progressive gives a modern flavor to the traditional belief of what a liberal is all about. A liberal politician (traditionally a Democrat) who adopts the views of "The Progressive Era" is the source of what a Progressive Liberal is all about. At its core, Progressive Liberalism is a belief that government could relieve social and economic distress.
Early examples of this belief created significant policies and programs such as the Pure Food and Drug Act, the Meat Inspection Act, the Sherman Anti-Trust Act, and laws to protect workers. These laws and policies were used to actively regulate the free market to correct problems perceived to be social ills.
Excessive regulation is considered, by capitalists, as an overreach of the Federal Government. The creation of rules, rather than relying on the free market to correct itself, places control in the hands of the government. Generally, this is part of the definition of Socialism. President Barack Obama provided his version of correcting social ills by his belief that government can and should help the less fortunate.
He also believed that woman should receive equal pay for equal work, so he championed the Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which passed Congress and became law. These laws and regulations have one common denominator. By relying on the expansion of the Federal Government, and less reliance on the free market, Progressive Liberals believe that perceived social ills will be corrected.
Social ills are not created, or solved, by regulation. Deregulation and a smaller Federal Government relies on the free market and the American people to provide solutions to what would commonly be called a social ill. The current about-face of the American economy cannot emphasize enough how America works better without regulation by the Federal Government. It is the opposite of Progressive Liberalism, and it works every time.
