California and other states restrict the ability of wineries to sell to individual consumers, and wineries object. Conservatives are split over what to do about it, reports the New York Times. Kenneth Starr and Clint Bolick want the federal government to overrule state laws using the commerce clause and the Supreme Court. Robert Bork and C. Boyden Gray argue for state-level restrictions on grounds of states rights. From a Rothbardian perspective, both sides are half right and half wrong: the first view favors centralizing government in the name of freedom, and the latter view is correct about states rights but advocates what amounts to a violation of the property rights of winery owners by telling them to whom they can and cannot sell. What’s the correct position? Work for the repeal of the laws on the state level—a solution one might think would be obvious but apparently is not among this crowd.
Wine Wars
