Writing for the socialist magazine, Jacobin, Luke Savage complains about what he calls “corporate tyranny over local governments.” Florida legislators are considering two bills that would allow businesses to sue local governments when they suffer economic damage from an ordinance. This is what Savage calls corporate tyranny.
He admits,
[I]t’s arguably quite hard to think of a single function of state activity, besides the enforcement of contracts and the protection of property rights, that one private interest or another couldn’t potentially insist is cutting into its current profits (or impeding future ones).
In other words, government regularly passes laws that are economically harmful to businesses. Not surprisingly, Savage doesn’t regard this as a problem. Businesses should just bear the cost without complaint because ordinances are “voted on by a duly elected official local body” that solicited input from the public. It’s a democratic process, and according to Savage’s brand of socialism, the majority should be free to do anything it chooses. If businesses have a legal standing to fight back, Savage argues that corporations will be able to veto “the will of the people”—i.e., impose corporate tyranny.
Corporate tyranny is impossible. A business cannot force individuals to buy its products or services. Government can; Medicare and Social Security are two examples. A business cannot force an employee to accept a wage that he finds unacceptable. Government can; minimum wage laws are one example. A business can’t force citizens to do anything. Government can; mask mandates, zoning, and sign ordinances are just a few of the countless examples. A business cannot throw anyone in jail for acting in a way that it doesn’t approve. Government can; drug laws, anti-smoking laws, and prohibitions on gambling are a few examples.
The essential difference between a corporation and government is: The government has a legal monopoly on the use of force. Only government can be tyrannical.