Not Your Grandfather’s America – Econlib

As I become older, I more and more really feel like this isn’t the nation I grew up in. Essentially the most dramatic latest modifications have been within the space of politics, the place the system is turning into nearly unrecognizable to these of us who have been born within the mid-Twentieth century. Right here’s Bloomberg:

The coalition between Clegg and Zuckerberg, the founding father of Meta Platforms Inc., proved much more profitable, although it, too, is coming to an finish, Clegg introduced on Thursday. Nonetheless, Clegg’s function has outlived its goal as Meta contends with a brand new political panorama, one during which the corporate should as a substitute flip to its highest-ranking Republican govt, Joel Kaplan, who joined Meta in 2011 and can succeed Clegg as president of world affairs. . . .

The motivations, each private and enterprise, are apparent. Lower than a yr has handed because the president-elect threatened to throw Zuckerberg in jail for “the remainder of his life.” . . .

It could be unfair to single out Zuckerberg. A number of different Silicon Valley contemporaries have flown to Florida to kiss the ring and empty their wallets. It’s commonplace for the large tech firms to seek out security in numbers and march in lockstep. For the second Trump time period, the consensus is that it’s higher to attempt to butter up the commander-in-chief, to deal with him with reverence reasonably than opposition.

So what has modified?  Prior to now, the ability of the president was restricted.  As an example, Congress set tariff charges.  Over time, nevertheless, the ability of the presidency has steadily expanded.  So-called “industrial insurance policies” usually favor one agency over one other.  Regulators more and more use imprecise “nationwide safety” justifications for a variety of discretionary choices.  Elon Musk’s latest transfer towards the GOP could have been partly motivated by a notion that the Biden administration was biased in opposition to his firms.

You may argue that massive enterprise has all the time been considerably political.  That’s true.  However I can not recall ever seeing a interval with such intense give attention to the political affiliation of high company executives.  For many of my life, it was assumed that almost all of CEOs have been Republicans, no matter which celebration managed the White Home.  More and more, you see enterprise individuals altering events because the political winds shift.

I feel it’s a mistake to view all of this in left-right phrases, which is the most typical framing within the US media.  Our neighbor to the south has been going by way of the same transformation, below a regime typically considered being on the left. Andrés Manuel López Obrador moved Mexico towards nationalistic financial insurance policies, opposition to wash vitality insurance policies, and elevated authoritarianism.  He’s seen as being on the left, however what do phrases like left and proper even imply in in the present day’s world?

Replace:  Simply hours after posting this, I got here throughout this story: