Crony capitalism hits Uber small business...

The scale of cronyism at the federal level dwarfs that of the states. Sometimes Uncle Sam plays favorites with individual businesses, such as the $433 million no-bid contract given to a politically connected company last year for an unnecessary smallpox vaccine. Often it benefits entire industries, such as the protection of the sugar industry through quotas and tariffs — policies that increase the price of sugar for all Americans. Always, it’s the ordinary taxpayer who ends up picking up the tab.