June 27, 2009 1:50PM 

# Understating the Case against a New Government Health Plan 

By [Michael F. Cannon](https://www.cato.org/people/michael-f-cannon) 

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I just caught wind of Rep. Paul Ryan’s (R‑WI) [quip](http://www.foxnews.com/search-results/m/23151806/rising-star.htm) about President Obama’s proposal to have a new government health insurance program compete against private insurers:

> Having the government compete against the private sector is kind of like my seven-year-old daughter’s lemonade stand competing against McDonald’s.

That understates the case. McDonald’s doesn’t have guns. It doesn’t use coercion or the threat of coercion against its competitors. A better analogy is that Obama’s proposal is like having a kid’s lemonade stand compete against Al Capone.

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[Health Care](https://www.cato.org/health-care) 

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