08/15/2026
Government rarely makes things cheaper. More often, it inserts itself between producers and consumers through taxes, licensing, mandates, regulations, subsidies, compliance costs, and bureaucracy. Every layer has a price, and that price eventually shows up on your receipt.
Markets push businesses to cut costs because competition rewards efficiency. Governments face the opposite incentives. Agencies don't go out of business when they fail. Budgets often grow regardless of performance, and every new rule adds another cost for someone to absorb.
Look at the industries where prices have risen the fastest over the past several decades: healthcare, college tuition, housing, childcare, and energy. These are also some of the most heavily regulated or subsidized sectors of the economy. Correlation doesn't prove causation, but it's worth asking why prices keep climbing where government involvement is greatest.
If politicians really wanted to make life more affordable, they could start by getting out of the way. Less bureaucracy. Less regulation. Lower taxes. More competition.
The best way to reduce the cost of living isn't creating another government program.
It's removing the ones that made living so expensive in the first place.
