The Minimum Wage -- the Triple Sin of Statism

Like so many other "Progressive" governmental economic policies, the federal minimum wage can be traced back to FDR and the New Deal, certainly one of the most expansive government programs in the history of the United States. Wildly popular amongst the left and supported by the Republican Party for political points, the minimum wage was first established in 1933 and has continued to plague the American economy ever since, the brief span between 1935 and 1938 in which the Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional notwithstanding. No longer are business agreements between employer and employee sealed with a handshake; instead, they are determined by a lawmaker's pen and enforced by the barrel of a gun.

In short, the minimum wage should be abolished, but before moving into the moral and economic reasons surrounding why the minimum wage should be $0.00, the first and most obvious reason resides in jurisprudence - namely, the correct interpretation of Article I, Section 8, Clause 3 of our Constitution: the Commerce Clause. As it reads, "[The Congress shall have the Power] To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes." Careful observers will note that withing the Commerce Clause, there exists only one power delegated to Congress: the power "To regulate Commerce." It is one power which is equally applied to three separate spheres of authority, not three spheres each with their own particular powers.

 Moreover, this clause merely gives Congress the power to regulate commerce between sovereign, political entities, not within them...

See full post here.

You can never win the game when the state doesn't even let you on the board.

Cartoon drawn by an extremely talented friend of mine -- and fellow libertarian -- at Creighton University. He wishes to remain unidentified.