When Government Failure Becomes the Solution

Government programs are often created with ambitious promises: improve education, strengthen American industry, lower costs, or expand opportunity. But when those policies fail to deliver, failure can become an argument not for reconsideration, but for more spending, intervention, and government control.

This week, Glenn Youngkin, Unleash Prosperity, and Jonathan Turley examine that pattern across education, industrial policy, and the growing appeal of socialism. Together, these pieces ask a fundamental question: when government fails to produce the promised results, should the answer be more government—or a different approach?

Put Parents Back in Charge of Education

Glenn Youngkin '25

Former Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin argues that Democratic governors are denying families new educational opportunities by refusing to participate in the federal Education Freedom Tax Credit. Pointing to Virginia's adoption of the program, Youngkin argues that education policy should empower parents to choose the opportunities that best serve their children rather than allowing politics or entrenched interests to stand in their way.

Nothing Succeeds as Much as Failure

Jonathan Turley '24 & '26

Jonathan Turley examines a recurring pattern in progressive politics: when government programs fail, the proposed solution is often to expand them. From healthcare and immigration to education and housing, Turley argues that disappointing results are used to justify more spending and government control rather than reassessing the underlying policy. He warns that the rise of Democratic Socialists is taking this tendency even further, turning government failure into an argument for more expansive socialism.

Yet Another Corporate Welfare Bust

Unleash Prosperity

Unleash Prosperity highlights the disappointing results of a $1 billion Biden-era subsidy program intended to revive electric-vehicle manufacturing jobs in Michigan. The group argues the episode demonstrates the risks of government-directed industrial policy and contends that lasting prosperity comes from competition and private investment—not government attempts to pick economic winners.