by Alan Wolfe

For those--I include myself--who continue to blame Ralph Nader for the disaster known as George W. Bush, the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Gonzales v. Cahart caps the story. It is not merely that this decision is one more example of the way in which the American right has become more statist than the left. It is that the paternalism of the decision flows directly from Nader's particular version of statism. Nader believes that consumers make irresponsible purchases and it is the job of the government to prevent them from decisions they will later regret. Justice Kennedy believes the same thing, even if, in this case, the purchase involves a decision by a women to ask a medical professional for help in a matter she considers threatening to her well-being. Nader never showed much sympathy for Roe in the first place. He must be delighted that a precedent has now been set for the government to second-guess every decision we are called upon to make, except, of course, that when it comes to buying a potentially faulty automobile, governmental paternalism will be nowhere to be found.