Decades of subsidies have hit middle-class America hardest

Yet what’s notable about all of these middle-class basics is that they have already been subject to decades of policy interventions, often though not always from Democrats. These elements of middle-class life have become unaffordable in tandem with, and in some cases because of, decades of policy interventions designed specifically to make them more accessible and more affordable to the middle class. And today’s elected Democrats seem intent on repeating the mistakes that brought America to this point.

Consider higher education, where the presence of decades of federally backed grants and loan programs has coincided with dramatic increases in the cost of college since the 1970s. From 1980 to 2016, higher education costs rose 238 percent, far faster than inflation. Student loan programs designed to make college more affordable have contributed to the escalating price of a degree, making it possible for universities to charge ever-higher tuition fees. A policy nominally geared toward affordability begat decades of unaffordability.

And rather than unwind it, many of today’s Democrats seem ready to double down: Hence, President Joe Biden’s move to cancel $400 billion in student loan debt and tweak payment rules in ways that will, if anything, further raise the cost of higher education while incentivizing degree choices with lower earning potential.

[These interventions largely consist of demand enhancers and resulting price spirals. That’s true of rent control as well, but higher education is an especially good example. Read it all. — Ed]