Amid mounting criticism for a lack of substantive policy plans, Vice President Kamala Harris is finally attempting to present her economic plan during a campaign event in North Carolina. She is proposing to federally ban food and grocery price gouging, an idea as impractical as it is simplistic. Low prices cannot be administratively enacted, they are a result of a healthy, competitive market. When meddling is attempted, market distortions occur leading to scarcity or overproduction. Red flag number one.
On top of this, Harris has plans to interfere even further with the market by suggesting ways to artificially lower prescription drugs costs. In her simplistic view of the world, expensive drugs are just the result of greedy corporations, not complex R&D processes, regulatory demands, and other considerations. She ignores the havoc wreaked on the pharmaceutical industry when government starts regulating prices. Red flag number two.
In a bid to interfere with the housing market and undermine free enterprise, Harris is proposing to offer up to $25,000 in down payment aid for first-time homebuyers. While this might sound good on the surface, it is a short-sighted policy that could potentially inflate housing prices to none but taxpayer’s detriment. The mere $10,000 tax credit previously proposed by the Biden administration, another impractical decision, is dwarfed by this number. Red flag number three.
Her campaign estimates that this ‘initiative’ will assist over 4 million first-time homebuyers. However, these figures seem to be arbitrary and there is little explanation as to how they were obtained. Additionally, the proposal to incentivize home construction via tax breaks and use $40 billion to address housing shortages reveals a lack of understanding of market forces.
Forced into a spotlight following her late addition to the Democratic ticket, Harris is attempting to suggest that assisting middle-class families is key to her agenda. Meanwhile, her Republican contender, Donald Trump, has taken advantage of her vagueness, accusing her of steering the nation towards an economic calamity reminiscent of the 1929 Depression.
Trump’s critique may not have been so far-fetched. He argued, in the absence of proof to the contrary, that if Harris assumed the presidency, the financial future of Americans would be in danger. With inflation rates starting to decelerate, and new data showing an increase of 2.9% in consumer prices in July, the slowest pace since early 2021, the impact of Harris’ pie-in-the-sky promises remains to be seen.
Friday brought a new proclamation from Harris’ camp, stating her support for a permanent expansion of the Child Tax Credit up to $3,600 per child, and decreasing taxes for lower-income workers by $1,500. While seemingly generous, this plan is severely short-sighted. Such moves are nothing more than band-aids that do not address the underlying issues of our broken tax system and only create fiscal responsibility for the future generation.
New parents, under the Harris plan, could expect a $6,000 tax credit. Yet again, this gimmicky proposal disregards the actual underlying problems of affordable childcare and the cost of raising children. The policies sound nice to those who do not question them, but in reality, they just push the can down the road for future taxpayers.
Harris also seeks to establish caps on prescription drugs, extending an ill-conceived initiative from a 2021 law that she was instrumental in securing. For instance, she wants a $35 per month cap on insulin and a maximum of $2,000 for annual out-of-pocket expenses. Sounds good on paper, but these ideas expose her ignorance of how capitalistic market forces drive innovation, which ultimately benefits consumers.
In a disappointing move, Harris is channeling her legal background to enforce these economically unhealthy maneuvers. She plans to enforce this new set of licensing rules by empowering the Federal Trade Commission and state attorneys general with increased investigative and penalizing authority.
She is also gearing up to intrude into the world of mergers and acquisitions, with a view to halt those that, in her opinion, would potentially inflate grocery costs. In direct contradiction to the principles of free-market capitalism, she endeavors to provide government intervention to control mergers.
Harris traditionally opposes new tariffs and, in stark contrast to the policies of free market proponents, seems to discredit any tax cuts for wealthy Americans. While it might appear as a drive to champion for the common man, these proposals don’t inspire confidence and only seem to further illustrate Harris’ lack of understanding of economic principles.
The concepts Harris proposes, while perhaps well-intentioned, seem more likely to hinder than help the American economy. A lack of understanding of basic economic principles, coupled with a seeming disregard for the role of free markets, makes for a dangerous mix.
Squandering taxpayer dollars on ill-considered schemes and a seeming penchant for interfering with free market dynamics, Harris’ economic plans can be likened to playing with fire. The lack of specificity and reliance on misguided policies make it clear that her recipes for ‘reform’ are likely to churn out economic chaos.
The Biden-Harris administration’s apparent intent to over-regulate and artificially manipulate market values is overly clear. Any promise of benefits or improvements should be seen for what they truly are: a dangerous attempt to further a deeply flawed economic ideology.
Instead of embracing and engaging with the principles that have made the US economy a global leader, the plans hint at a disregard for the economic power of liberty and self-determination. The consequences of such economically reckless proposals have been well-demonstrated in history – and they are not positive.
Harris’ Economic Plan: A Recipe for Disaster appeared first on Real News Now.
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