Nathan Deal, R-Ga., resigned last week as congressman and is now running for governor. His resignation ends an ethics investigation into whether he used his official position to help his business — a salvage yard.
The story here is not that he won his business some sort of earmark or handout. Nor is it the sort of story the media generally tell, that he thwarted some regulation of his business. The suspicion is that he may have used his clout to prevent a deregulation that would have allowed other businesses to compete with him.
Here’s the report from the Office of Congressional Ethics.
Here’s a WaPo editorial that tells the story fairly concisely.
If the accusations are true, it’s another example of how politically connected businesses use Big Government to kill competition and profit. We’ve seen similar stories in tobacco, toys, and food, among other industries.
