It is a common misconception that the more laws a legislative body passes the better they are at “getting things done.” We believe, however, that the fewer bills signed into law the better off we are.
Fewer bills equal more freedom, amirite?
Gov. Hickenlooper, Democratic lawmakers and many in the media seem to disagree. They eagerly bemoan the fact that only about 350 (!!!) bills were passed this year – about a 100 less than in previous sessions. The decrease is clearly a byproduct of divided government, but sh*t, 350 still sounds like a lot of new laws to us. Especially considering the session is only 120 days long.
The same misconception plagues Congress. The Washington Post eagerly labeled the GOP led House of Representatives as the least productive Congress ever because it is extremely difficult to get anything passed through that chamber. Again, why is this a bad thing? Why do people assume that more laws somehow signal progress?
As Ronald Reagan famously said: “Government is not the solution to our problem, government is the problem.”