The brilliant free market economist Ludwig von Mises said it best, nearly a century ago:
“The advocates of public control cannot do without inflation. They need it in order to finance their policy of reckless spending and of lavishly subsidizing and bribing the voters.”
“Inflation is an increase in the quantity of money without a corresponding increase in the demand for money, i.e., for cash holdings.”
“Inflation is the fiscal complement of statism and arbitrary government. It is a cog in the complex of policies and institutions which gradually lead toward totalitarianism .”
“Inflation has always been an important resource of policies of war and revolution and why we also find it in the service of socialism.”
“If one regards inflation as an evil, then one has to stop inflating. One has to balance the budget of the government.”
The issue isn’t whether to be FOR or AGAINST the “big beautiful bill.” The issue is that this bill — as with any bill the Congress passes without addressing spending — is impossible to achieve without continued inflation.
Put it this way: The government cannot tax us at 90 or 100 percent; if they did, there probably would be a revolution, and the economy would collapse overnight. Neither will the government cut spending — not even a little. So the only option left? Keep increasing the spending while increasing the supply of money via the Federal Reserve. As von Mises wrote: Inflation is a policy, not a symptom. Politicians are doing this to us on purpose, to maintain and increase their power (and personal wealth).
The Trump administration had the right idea with DOGE. But as we learned, in the end, you cannot cut government spending without Congress cutting the spending.
The Congress does not appear willing to cut spending. Not even a Republican Congress claiming to be aligned with MAGA, which (Trump has demonstrated) does support massive cuts in federal spending (and power).
Sooner or later, we’ll have to face this fact. Either inflation will get so out of control and bother people so badly, through the despair and impoverishment it brings, that government will finally cut spending (as they’re now attempting in Argentina); or our Congress and politicians will start to become more rational and cut spending without waiting for a financial calamity.
I’m not betting on the latter.