Moving Toward Freedom

"Exit visas are imminent."
--Gordon Gekko (Wall Street)

A nice feature of our federalist design is that it invites policy competition among the states. States that impose high taxes on its citizens, for instance, risk losing a big chunk of its tax base if people choose to flee to lower tax regimes.

Currently, varied state responses w.r.t. re-opening their economies post COVID is creating a new basis for policy competition. States such as California, New York, and Michigan, which have signaled that their lockdown orders will extend into the foreseeable future, could see a wave of exits as people seek freedom.

Of course, it is also possible that some people ditch free states if they believe that rescinding lock-down orders puts their health in jeopardy.

While competition related to unlocking economies creates a two-way street, my sense is that traffic will be heavy in one direction only as people move toward freedom.