An economic departure from the GOP's recent free-market traditions
Vice President JD Vance has said American right-of-center economic policy is now “much more Alexander Hamilton than it is Milton Friedman,” and he has called that shift “obviously a good thing.” Friedman’s tradition treated markets as the default and government intervention as the exception requiring justification. Hamilton’s tradition treated a strong central government as the engine of economic development, from national banks to tariffs to direct subsidies. Vance is naming his preference and endorsing it.
TL;DR
- Vice President JD Vance advocates for an economic policy shift from Milton Friedman's free-market approach to Alexander Hamilton's model of strong central government.
- Hamilton's tradition emphasizes government as an engine for economic development through measures like national banks, tariffs, and subsidies.
- This departure from recent GOP free-market traditions has historical precedents within the Republican party.
- Vance's version is characterized by its grounding in religious terms and its prominence within a sitting administration.