This is an example of what happens when government hacks get out of the way of business.
This is exceedingly inapt phrasing.
Government wasn’t previously in the way of business on this particular hotel, government was making noises about handing over taxpayer money to help business build the hotel, either directly via subsidies / tax breaks to the hotel, and/or indirectly by expanding the convention center (not the same things).
Then, a new government administration declined to hand over money to either of those tasks. And yes, there were some who complained about government’s “failure”, but in this case the complained-about “failure” was the refusal to subsidize business, whether directly (hotel tax breaks) or indirectly (convention center expansion). Now we learn that business is able to do this hotel after all, without either the taxpayer subsidy or the convention center expansion. A bluff was called, and the business sector has incurred absolutely no harm in having that bluff called. We as taxpayers very clearly have benefitted from that bluff being called.
So while I share some of your disdain for those on this board or elsewhere who complained that this hotel couldn’t be built without the convention center being expanded and/or subsidies for the hotel, I do not share your belief that this shows what happens when government gets out of the way of business. Government was not in the way; to the contrary, government was being asked to get very much IN the way with outlays of taxpayer dollars, so as to create the demand and/or make the hotel financing work.
Declining to hand out subsidies and / or expand convention centers is a very different thing than getting out of the way. In this case, those doing the governing were not being hacks, they were being very sensible and saving us all money. Show some respect.
