Let the Gridlock Continue

Let the Gridlock Continue

Here we are weeks into the debate on the debt and it looks like the poor Congress is stuck working through the weekend because August 2nd is a date where the economic world as we know it will end here in the United States. So the pundits say! Either way gridlock in the system is what was meant to happen by our founders.

“The public interest is the most secure when governmental institutions are inefficient decision makers.” (Marcus E. Ethridge, Cato)

That makes more sense to me than one that enacts legislation fast and without efficient debate. There are dozens of interest groups that would like to influence this debate because they set to benefit from the decision to raise the debt ceiling. I understand that it would affect people financially in many ways but when are we going to say enough is enough.

Headlines all over the internet say how inefficient the Congress is and that the “Republicans, Tea Partiers, Democrats” and other people are to blame for this indecision. Is it so bad! I know that the debt ceiling could mean changes to how the country functions and how our debt is rated but when government can’t come to a conclusion then the public wins.

Marcus Ethridge from the Cato Institute had a good paper on the benefits of gridlock. He makes the argument that when there is gridlock the general population wins because special interests have the most influence and their narrow interests gain while the general public don't. That is interesting because progressives have argued since Woodrow Wilson that having interest groups are a good way to bypass the legislative process. Is that why we have so many czars today and why the EPA has said that if Congress does not pass emissions controls than they will implement them without any measure? Both sides have their interest groups and it seems that the more these groups influence the more inequality continues.

It is something to think about. Why do pundits get so angry when there is gridlock? Probably because they have something to gain from raising the debt! There is room for both sides to debate this but almost all new organizations have some scare tactic for their headlines and in the end the people get more and more confused and only know the talking points of those pundits. America will be fine and if they want their best interests to be met then LET THE GRIDLOCK CONTINUE.