When Ron Paul speaks you hear wisdom, knowledge and focus. When Bachmann speaks you hear sound bites, one-liners and applause-ready quips. Perhaps thats because she’s Palin 2.0 and despite a seemingly solid track record there is not enough Constitutional and economic horsepower in the tank to make her a viable candidate.

Recently Bachmann praised free-market icon Ludwig von Mises as her favorite “beach reading.”

Well apparently she never got too deep into the philosophy or she’s a recent convert because in 2009 she was giving heartfelt praise to government intervention in her state’s agricultural business.

“Your efforts to stabilize prices through direct government purchasing of pork and dairy products are very much welcomed by the producers in Minnesota, and I would encourage you to take any additional steps necessary to prevent further deterioration of these critical industries, such as making additional commodity purchases and working to expand trade outlets for these and other agricultural goods,” Bachmann wrote.

While it’s true that the state’s pork farmers were experiencing massive problems due to H1N1 and the hysteria surrounding Swine Flu (another government-sponsored fear festival), they still had insurance for times like these.

Allowing–or promoting–government intervention always ends with favoritism and crony capitalism that benefits a few at the cost of the many, enables bad business practices to continue, and destabilizes prices for everyone in the market.