Ronald Reagan long believed and loved to repeat his well-received line that "the nine most terrifying words in the English language are: 'I'm from the government and I'm here to help.'"
As part of her first substantive economic policy address, Vice President and Democratic Party presidential nominee Kamala Harris is expected to announce today, August 16, that a Harris administration will implement a federal ban on price-gouging for food and groceries.
According to The Washington Post, part of the plan would see Harris directing the Federal Trade Commission to impose financial penalties against corporations that her administration judges to have engaged in price-gouging.
While decorated in the language of consumer protection amid seemingly endless price increases at the grocery store, is such a policy indeed helpful or yet another example of federal interference that will do nothing to lower the cost of living?
Currently, 37 states have laws in place that ban price-gouging, which prohibit companies from taking advantage of unexpected disparities between supply and demand.
To no one's surprise, economists disagree about whether a federal price-gouging ban would aid Americans who are struggling with inflation or merely expand regulatory burdens further.
University of Maryland professor of finance Michael Faulkender told ABC News that he thinks it's the latter:
"It just sounds to me that we're creating more burdensome regulations that will actually raise prices for consumers."
Given the runaway expansion of the federal government since the turn of the 20th century and the increase in consumer, energy, and food prices during the last few years, that seems the way to bet.
We at Convention of States are dedicated to calling an Article V convention to discuss and propose amendments to the Constitution that limit the scope and power of the federal government.
Like Reagan, we are skeptical about grand plans announced from federal officials of any party that may reassure an anxious public or generate feel-good campaign rhetoric, yet usually amount to the delegation of more influence and control to unelected and unaccountable bureaucrats in Washington.
To join the fight against potentially terrifying government "help" and the increasing power of the administrative state, sign the petition below and volunteer.
