McGovern's Conversion To Conservatism

Last Friday's Wall Street Journal featured a remarkable editorial by George McGovern entitled "Freedom Means Responsibility." To read his latest piece is to, I believe, witness the final conversion of Senator McGovern into a man of truly conservative values.

Some passages from his editorial are,

"Nearly 16 years ago in these very pages, I wrote that "'one-size-fits all' rules for business ignore the reality of the market place." Today I'm watching some broad rules evolve on individual decisions that are even worse.

Under the guise of protecting us from ourselves, the right and the left are becoming ever more aggressive in regulating behavior. Much paternalist scrutiny has recently centered on personal economics, including calls to regulate subprime mortgages.

Health-care paternalism creates another problem that's rarely mentioned: Many people can't afford the gold-plated health plans that are the only options available in their states.

Buying health insurance on the Internet and across state lines, where less expensive plans may be available, is prohibited by many state insurance commissions. Despite being able to buy car or home insurance with a mouse click, some state governments require their approved plans for purchase or none at all. It's as if states dictated that you had to buy a Mercedes or no car at all.

Economic paternalism takes its newest form with the campaign against short-term small loans, commonly known as "payday lending.

With payday lending, people in need of immediate money can borrow against their future paychecks, allowing emergency purchases or bill payments they could not otherwise make. The service comes at the cost of a significant fee -- usually $15 for every $100 borrowed for two weeks. But the cost seems reasonable when all your other options, such as bounced checks or skipped credit-card payments, are obviously more expensive and play havoc with your credit rating.

Anguished at the fact that payday lending isn't perfect, some people would outlaw the service entirely, or cap fees at such low levels that no lender will provide the service. Anyone who's familiar with the law of unintended consequences should be able to guess what happens next."

That last line is amazing to read. I'm old enough to remember McGovern's run for the Presidency, so this is particularly sweet to read. Imagine him, a former ultra-liberal Democratic US Senator, acknowledging the 'law of unintended consequences.'

It harks back to his reflections on attempting to run a B&B some years ago. Whether he appeared on Firing Line with Bill Buckley, or merely wrote about it in the Journal, I recall that he seemed a truly chastened man. His admission of frustration in dealing with the very same laws and paternalistic attitude he had helped craft as a Senator was gratifying to watch.

McGovern closed his piece with these words,

"Since leaving office I've written about public policy from a new perspective: outside looking in. I've come to realize that protecting freedom of choice in our everyday lives is essential to maintaining a healthy civil society.

Why do we think we are helping adult consumers by taking away their options? We don't take away cars because we don't like some people speeding. We allow state lotteries despite knowing some people are betting their grocery money. Everyone is exposed to economic risks of some kind. But we don't operate mindlessly in trying to smooth out every theoretical wrinkle in life.

The nature of freedom of choice is that some people will misuse their responsibility and hurt themselves in the process. We should do our best to educate them, but without diminishing choice for everyone else."

I could not put it better myself. Nor, I think, could any conservative of longstanding beliefs in that vein.