by Benjamin Powell
The American Institute for Economic Research
President Trump should not have used the Defense Production Act to force General Motors to manufacture ventilators. Rather than government central planning, we need market forces to harness entrepreneurial creativity in order to innovate solutions during the coronavirus pandemic.
The Defense Production Act is a Korean War-era measure that gives the president power to require businesses to produce goods he deems necessary for national defense. On Friday President Trump used it to “require General Motors to accept, perform, and prioritize Federal contracts for ventilators.”