Editorial: Before Accepting the Promise, Ask to See the Bill

Johnnie Aycock, the host of the Noon Show on Catfish 100.1 and the longtime former president and CEO of the Chamber of Commerce of West Alabama, is a contributing columnist for the Thread. The Entrepreneurial Community: An Editorial will look at the people, institutions and ideas that shape this corner of the state and be published every Monday.

You do not need an economics degree to understand the economy. You encounter it when you fill your gas tank, buy groceries or calculate whether you can afford a home. You also encounter it when there is more month left than paycheck.

As Election Day approaches, candidates promise lower prices, better jobs and greater prosperity. Those are worthy goals. But a promise is not a plan—and someone eventually pays for every plan.

Get our free mobile app

Consider tariffs. They can protect an American producer while raising costs for another American business that needs imported parts. Those costs can reach you at the checkout counter.

Consider the war involving Iran. Disrupted energy supplies affect more than gasoline. Higher fuel costs can raise the expense of moving food, operating equipment and delivering goods.

Consider borrowing. When financing costs rise, a first home can slip out of reach, a small business can postpone expansion, and a community can pay more for infrastructure.

Government does not control every price or interest rate. But public decisions influence the choices available to you—and the money left after you make them.

Some costs are worth paying. Good schools, reliable roads and national security require investment. The question is whether the benefits justify the cost, and whether that cost is honestly explained.

Apply the same test to every candidate: How will this work? Who pays? What must we give up? What result should we expect?

Your household budget cannot survive on slogans. Neither can sound public policy. So, before accepting the promise, ask to see the bill.

To comment, send an email to jaycockrainforest@gmail.com

The Entrepreneurial Community: An Editorial appears regularly on the Tuscaloosa Thread. Aycock and his co-host Lisa Jones can be heard on the Noon Show on Catfish 100.1 every weekday from 12 to 1 p.m.