Not Enough “Political Will,” but What Is That?

Source: EconLog
by Pierre Lemieux

“The idea that the only thing missing in a project is ‘political will’ is a cliche representative of our times. We find it again in a Financial Times article about regulating social media (‘The Coming Battle Between Social Media and the State,’ January 21, 2025): ‘But there are two problems with regulating social media platforms. … The second is that to impose effective regulation against unwilling platforms will require determined, unflinching governmental action and political will.’ The first meaning of political will is apparent in the vocabulary: ‘determined’ and ‘unflinching’ ‘governmental action.’ … A second conception of political will is sugarcoated and more procedural: it is what some politicians or rulers want strongly enough to persuade their colleagues to accept or not reject it as laws or regulations (or extra-legal actions).” (01/24/25)

https://www.econlib.org/not-enough-political-will-but-what-is-that/