Mamdani’s government grocery; Trump’s government airline; both are bad ideas

Socialism by any other name is still the same

ROBERT M. LEVY

Government-run grocery stores? Government-run housing and healthcare? Everyone knows that socialism does not work! Well, how about a government-run airline or a government-run computer chipmaker? Better yet, how about a government-run “sovereign wealth fund” where the government invests in private industry and takes a stake in the equity? That’s socialism, too. But since the president favors some of it, too many Republicans look the other way.

Last summer, the chipmaker Intel was doing poorly. The solution from the Trump administration was to provide Intel with about $8.9 billion while receiving a 10% ownership stake in return. Right now, Spirit Airlines is also doing poorly. Similarly, the Administration now wants to do the same with Spirit. It wants to invest $500 million and take the same 10% government interest in that company. Will Spirit become a government-run grocery store in the sky?

“No,” the president might argue. “When government invests in an airline, that is capitalism at work.” It is integral to the Trump philosophy that the American government ought to create a “sovereign, wealth fund” similar to that used by other countries, notably Saudi Arabia. So, the argument goes, it is capitalism for the modern world.

To a businessman like Donald Trump, it all seems logical. In fact, it seems like part of an accepted conservative principle: 1) Government should be run like a business. 2) A business sells goods and services to make a profit. And 3) if government is run like a business, it should own a company, sell “stuff” and make a profit. Within the discipline called “logic,” that is known as a “false tautology.” Whether it comes from President Donald Trump or Mayor Zohran Mamdani, it is still “government ownership of the means of production.” It is still “socialism.”

Private industry has only one overriding interest. It is to make a profit for its investors. Profit incentivizes industrial expansion. In turn, that expands the nation’s economy. It is all called “capitalism.” And it works.

Sure, government has a legitimate role in industry; but it is not ownership. Government should justly but sparingly regulate industry. Consistent with the United States Constitution, government is charged with “regulating” commerce, not owning it. As such, it should make sure that businesses compete fairly. More plainly, government is there to make sure industry does not “rip off” its competitors or the general public.

This capitalist “setup” is also the most democratic way to run both an economy and a government. By their spending, the people can ensure that the goods and services they want are the goods and services that are offered, not the goods and services the government wants them to buy. The people have already decreed that they do not want to buy what Spirit Airlines is selling. It’s not the role of government to “put lipstick on a pig.” Capitalism works well in America because it is both governance and economics “of the people, by the people and for the people.” Ignoring the principles of capitalism weakens the nation.

While this writer believes that Donald Trump’s policies have saved the United States from both economic and social devastation, he will not support the President blindly. Former New York City Mayor Ed Koch best echoed this sentiment when he said, “If you agree with me on 9 out of 12 issues, vote for me. If you agree with me on 12 out of 12 issues, see a psychiatrist.” On the issue of government ownership of business, this writer takes solace in the mayor’s philosophy.

Rather than buy industry, government needs to loosen regulations on industry. From the sports industry to the chip and the airline industries, government should rely more on the people to control the economy with their wallets and less on direct intervention into the free marketplace.

Robert M. Levy RLevy.Substack.com

Robert M. Levy PsyschodadRobert@gmail.com

Robert M. Levy grew up in Moore County and graduated from Pinecrest High School. He earned a BA in history and sociology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where his honors thesis on the Wilmington Rebellion of 1898 became part of the university’s library collection.

Admitted to the California State Bar in 1978, Levy practiced law for 40 years in California and Maryland, focusing on family and criminal law, including work with juvenile offenders and abused children. His writing on affirmative action appeared in the San Fernando Valley Law Review, and he authored Divorce: A Cynical Experience. He later earned a North Carolina teaching certificate from UNC Charlotte and taught high school social studies across Moore County.

Levy has served as chairman of the Moore County School Board, president of the North Carolina Electoral College, chairman of the Moore County Republican Party, and a columnist for The Pilot in Southern Pines. He lives in Pinehurst with his wife, Linda, and they have three children and four grandchildren.

April 26, 2026

Republished with permission.

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