Economics with Dr. Hendrickson: Why Free Markets Aren’t on the Ballot
Politicians cater to the masses at the expense of capitalism and free markets.
By Scott Cross
November’s episode of Economics with Dr. Hendrickson centered around a very timely topic given the recent U.S. presidential election: Why do politicians not campaign on freer markets? This is an interesting question because free markets would be better for everyone and the U.S. promotes itself as a free society.
Although this may seem puzzling, Dr. Hendrickson points out that anti-free market politicians make perfect sense with the background of a quote by the economist Thomas Sowell. Sowell explains, “The first rule of economics is that scarcity forces trade-offs. The first rule of politics is to ignore the first rule of economics.”
Politicians constantly pledge to do and offer more to secure their election. But there are only a limited amount of resources and funds with which to accomplish everything that the government is currently doing in addition to everything the new politicians promise.
Government officials are only able to raise taxes and inflate the currency so much before the people react by voting them out of office. This, Dr. Hendrickson points out, is why the government has racked up tens of trillions of dollars in debt. To finance their unchecked spending without cutting any of the programs already promised, the government continues to rack up more debt, raise taxes, and inflate the currency.
A False God
This is largely due to something that is not often disparaged in our society: what Dr. Hendrickson calls “the false god of democracy.” Since there are more middle- and lower-class people than rich people, the politicians tend to cater to the poor and working class at the expense of the rich. The rich are ganged up on.
Instead of running on freer markets, politicians in the recent election ran on expanding tariffs, “saving” social security, price controls, and a multitude of other programs that inch the U.S economy further from the ideal of free market capitalism.
Dr. Hendrickson also warns that each of these programs is a slippery slope that invites still more intervention into the economy and further undermines the original philosophy behind the Constitution.
Listen to Economics with Dr. Hendrickson!
Interested in hearing more from Dr. Hendrickson? You can find other lectures in the series Economics with Dr. Hendrickson here.
About the Author
Scott T. Cross is a content editor for Checkpoint News from Columbiana, Ohio. As a junior student at Grove City College, Scott is majoring in Economics with a minor in Music. He is a marketing fellow at the Institute for Faith and Freedom.
During the summers of 2023 and 2024, Scott interned as a Research Assistant at the Allegheny Institute for Public Policy in Pittsburgh. There, he co-authored numerous published Research Briefs analyzing and advocating for public policies that promote private property and roll back the ever-increasing scope of government power. Scott also appeared on multiple radio broadcasts to discuss his research.
On campus he serves as Vice President of the Mises Society, an organization he co-founded that seeks to promote fellowship and the ideas congruent with the Austrian School of Economics
Scott has won a Don Lavoie Fellowship through the Mercatus Center, is a member of the Omicron Delta Epsilon international honors society in economics, and his work has been published by the Mises Institute.
Following Graduation, Scott intends to pursue graduate studies in either economics or law.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed are those of the writer alone and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Grove City College, the Institute for Faith and Freedom, or their affiliates.
Cover Image: The Institute for Faith and Freedom (cropped).