OPINION:
Way back at the end of March, the Justice Department’s antitrust division announced that it had launched a task force to “advocate for the elimination of anticompetitive state and federal laws and regulations that undermine free market competition and harm consumers, workers, and businesses.”
Abigail Slater, the U.S. assistant attorney general in charge of this effort, wrapped up by noting: “This Antitrust Division will stand against harmful barriers to competition, whether imposed by public regulators or private monopolists.”
I’m not sure whether there is some other antitrust division in the department, but leaving that aside, the initiative sounds sparky. There is only one problem: As pretty much everyone in these United States knows, the most destructive and dangerous monopoly is not exercised by any private company. It is the monopoly of the Democratic Party with respect to numerous urban governments.
Like most monopolies, Democratic control of American cities has led to suboptimal results compared with jurisdictions with two-party competition with respect to control of the government. There are so many examples, it is difficult to choose just a few, but let’s limit it to education, crime and quality of life.
You may be shocked to learn that Memphis, Tennessee, Baltimore, St. Louis and Detroit routinely lead the nation in the rate of violent crime. The most recent Republican mayor in Memphis served less than one year 43 years ago. The last Republican mayor who served a complete term wrapped up in 1967. Baltimore has had one Republican mayor (who served two nonconsecutive terms) since 1931. St. Louis last had a Republican mayor in 1949. Detroit is not much more tolerant; its most recent Republican mayor left office in 1957.
How about education? According to Money Inc., Detroit has the worst school system in the nation. Cleveland has the second worst. Baltimore is the third, and Milwaukee the fourth. The last Republican mayor of Cleveland? George Voinovich, who left town in 1989. The last Republican mayor of Milwaukee? Who could forget Frank Zeidler, who was all done by 1960?
Which are the most rat-infested cities? It may amaze you to learn that Chicago, New York, Los Angeles and the District of Columbia are the top four, according to Orkin. The last Republican mayor of Chicago was William Thompson back in 1931. New York? Rudolph W. Guiliani in 2001. Before him, you have to go back to John Lindsay in 1973. I don’t count Michael R. Bloomberg because, like most other rich dudes, his only political belief is that he should have either more power, more money or both. Los Angeles has had one Republican mayor (for one term) since 1957. The District of Columbia? Don’t be ridiculous. It has not had a Republican mayor since home rule.
I could, of course, go on indefinitely. Economic opportunity. Housing. Family formation. Domestic violence. Cost of living. Transportation. It doesn’t matter what you look at or for; in almost every instance, cities under Democratic rule do worse than their neighboring jurisdictions or jurisdictions far away, for that matter.
If the Justice Department is really serious about breaking up monopolies that have a toxic effect on Americans, they should do something about America’s cities. The reality is that millions live and die, and have lived and died, in the terrible, deadly shadow of generations of Democratic control over our cities. If Team Justice is interested in making life better for Americans, that’s the real monopoly on which they should focus.
Fortunately, Justice is taking comments at AnticompetitiveRegulations@usdoj.gov. Shoot them a note and ask what their plan might be to address the monopoly political power that Democratic machines have held for generations in our nation’s largest cities.
• Michael McKenna is a contributing editor at The Washington Times.
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