In National Review’s Capital Matters, CEA President John C. Mozena laid out the case against the prevailing subsidy-first model of economic development in America’s state and municipal governments:
Many complain that these sorts of subsidy programs are the government “picking winners and losers.” If only that were true. In reality, economic development agencies pick both winners and losers with abandon, shoveling money out the door to all but the most screamingly dubious deals and following what long-time community development researcher Herbert J. Rubin of Northern Illinois University memorably dubbed the “Shoot anything that flies; claim everything that falls” model of economic development.