The Best Government Leaves Its Citizens to Their Own Devices

April 24, 2019

“In a time in which politics are as divisive as ever, with Republicans and Democrats incapable of agreeing on even the most innocuous of bills, it is nearly impossible for truly revolutionary ideas to cut through the bickering and backbiting,” Goldwater Institute President and CEO Victor Riches wrote in a recent In Defense of Liberty post.

Right to Try, designed by the Institute, is “the single greatest exception to this trend,” yet it became the center of a USA Today and Arizona Republic hitpiece on model legislation. Riches recently joined The Jeff Oravits Show to talk about his recent response to this piece on In Defense of Liberty. Right to Try, through which patients with terminal diseases can gain access to investigational medications, became the law of the entire land last May. And since then, Riches explained, stories of patient treatments under Right to Try have begun to emerge—including the story of ALS patient Matt Bellina (read more about Bellina’s treatment here)—and Right to Try will surely help many more patients in the future.

“The best government is a government that leaves its citizens to their own devices,” Riches said. That’s not just true when it comes to Right to Try: It also applies to the Goldwater Institute’s work defending the right to earn a living. Riches talked about two important occupational licensing reforms in Arizona, which have helped make the state one of the friendliest for worker freedom in the country. Arizona recently became the second state to not require its blow-dry stylists to obtain a time-consuming and expensive license in order for them to dry and style hair. Riches said that the blow-dry issue perhaps illustrates more than any other issue “the complete absurdity of these occupational licenses.” Also earlier this month, Arizona became the first state in the nation to recognize out-of-state licenses, making it easier for new residents to continue their careers seamlessly once they move to the state. Riches explained how opponents of occupational licensing reform are siding with special interests over workers.

Listen to the full interview with Riches here.