Pro-Business versus Pro-Market

In What Principles Rule the GOP?, Jonah Goldberg reminds GOP leadership of the distinction between being "pro-business" and "pro-market," and says party leadership's understanding of that distinction will be put to the test when they consider reauthorization of the Export-Import Bank next year.

Just to clarify, the difference between being pro-business and pro-market is categorical. A politician who is a "friend of business" is exactly that, a guy who does favors for his friends. A politician who is pro-market is a referee who will refuse to help protect his friends (or anyone else) from competition unless the competitors have broken the rules. The friend of business supports industry-specific or even business-specific loans, grants, tariffs or tax breaks. The pro-market referee opposes special treatment for anyone.

Goldberg argues the GOP can't play the crony capitalism game of the Democrats any longer.

GOP politicians can’t have it both ways anymore. An economic system that simply doles out favors to established stakeholders becomes less dynamic and makes job growth less likely. (Most jobs are created by new businesses.) Politically, the longer we’re in a “new normal” of lousy growth, the more the focus of politics turns to wealth redistribution. That’s bad for the country and just awful politics for Republicans. In that environment, being the party of less — less entitlement spending, less redistribution — is a losing proposition.

Also, for the first time in years, there’s an organized — or mostly organized — grassroots constituency for the market. ... Now, there’s an infrastructure of tea-party-affiliated and other free-market groups forcing Republicans to stop fudging.