UPS and Federal Express, competing in the regulated and subsidized world of shipping, find themselves again battling it out in Washington, rather than in the marketplace. The current weapon of choice is labor law.

UPS has pushed through the House a provision that would saddle FedEx with the same labor laws under which UPS struggles. FedEx, with a $9-million-per-year lobbying operation, has responded by unleashing a public relations campaign accusing UPS of seeking a “bailout.”