The Biden stimulus plan is deluging governments across America with hundreds of billions of dollars of extra revenue that will allow politicians to stretch their power in ways that vex citizens long after the pandemic is over. 

One year ago writing for AIER, I asked, "Will the Political Class Be Held Liable For What They've Done?" Lockdowns at that point had already destroyed more than ten million jobs without thwarting the virus – a debacle that "should be a permanent black mark against the political class and the experts who sanctified each and every sacrifice." No such luck. The article warned that "sovereign immunity… almost guarantees that no politician will face any personal liability for their shutdown dictates."

The political class is coming out of the pandemic with far more power and prerogatives. Biden's stimulus windfalls for lockdown governors is like giving $100,000 bounties to drunk drivers who crashed their cars. Government employees have been the ultimate privileged class during Covid-19, collecting full paychecks almost everywhere while many of them stayed home and did little or no work.

Maryland will receive between $55 billion to $60 billion in federal stimulus funds – equal to "11 percent of the state's entire economy." The Maryland legislature "celebrated" by giving bonuses to government employees and by funding many new programs. Many other states have similarly used federal windfalls to launch new initiatives.