November 9, 2008 1:51PM # Who Killed Big Pharma? By [Michael F. Cannon](https://www.cato.org/people/michael-f-cannon) --- SHARE Prior to the election, *The Wall Street Journal*’s editors [criticized](http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122523831107978193.html) pharmaceutical manufacturers for spending money to prop up Democratic congresscritters, who will no doubt reward Big Pharma by slapping price controls on prescription drugs. The *Journal* likened this to Big Pharma [selling the rope with which they will be hanged](Pharma%20May%20Regret%202003%20Deal%20With%20Feds%20). Yesterday, the *Journal* published my [letter to the editor](http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122611225162710735.html): > Big Pharma sold the rope with which it will be hanged back in 2003 (“[Pharma Sells the Rope](https://www.cato.org/article/SB122523831107978193.html),” Review & Outlook, Oct. 29) when it agreed to make the federal government — specifically, the new Medicare Part D program — its largest customer. It is because of that Republican initiative that the specter of price controls now hangs loosely around Big Pharma’s neck. > > > The $13.2 million bribe that Big Pharma threw at the Democrats in this election cycle is merely an attempt to buy off the hangman. ##### Related Tags [General](https://www.cato.org/general), [Health Care](https://www.cato.org/health-care) [![Creative Commons License](/build/cato_2020/images/creative-commons.svg)](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/) This work is licensed under a [Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/).