Uber has revolutionized the taxi industry over the past few years, gaining praise and many fans along the way. While plenty of Republican senators and congressmen have voiced their support for the company independently, Uber can now officially count the Republican National Committee among its most ardent supporters.
The RNC sent out an email Wednesday calling on people to sign a petition in support of “free market companies like Uber.”
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The petition states:
That’s what innovative businesses like Uber provide. And that’s why our cities need Uber.
But across the country, taxi unions and liberal government bureaucrats are setting up roadblocks, issuing strangling regulations and implementing unnecessary red tape to block Uber from doing business in their cities.
We must stand up for our free market principles, entrepreneurial spirit and economic freedom.”
Uber is an app that lets people order their own personal driver. Payments are handled through the app and patrons are able to track their driver in real time. It and similar ride-sharing companies like Lyft have become hugely popular, but they are banned or have heavy restrictions placed on them in some cities.
RNC Finance Director Katie Walsh called these attempts “to block Uber from providing services simply because it’s cutting into the taxi unions’ profits” in Tuesday’s email.
Gawker derided the email and petition as a cheap attempt for the Republicans to gain support from millennials, the primary users of Uber’s services.
But the RNC says it is a larger indictment of a system that is broken and harming innovation.
“When new companies and new technology come along, it’s not the government’s job to protect the old way of doing things. Government shouldn’t pick winners and losers. They certainly shouldn’t block innovation, which can make life easier and more affordable, just so an existing monopoly isn’t threatened,” RNC Chairman Reince Priebus said in a statement.
“When legislators over-regulate, it’s consumers who pay the price. In some cases, they pay more for goods and services because the government increases the cost of just doing business. Uber has thrived, in part because the public has spoken out in support of Uber, but why should any company have to fight the government tooth-and-nail just to be a given a chance to compete?” he continued.
“The issue is larger than Uber. How many companies, how many products, how many innovations have died prematurely because the government over-reached and interfered in the free market? Government has a role to play, but that role isn’t to protect the status quo. It should be consumers, not government bureaucrats or legislators that decide what companies get our business.”
