Are you a time traveller from the 18th century or something? The good people in Congress have worked for centuries to not let free markets remain too free - otherwise where the good people in Congress would get the votes and the campaign funds, if they couldn't tweak free markets to benefit this or that interest group? Of course, the good citizens are universally (within tiny margin of error commonly called "those crazy libertarians") cheering this since they belong to one or other interest groups. The fact that while they are screwing others with one special interest law other screw them ten times with another ten special interest laws so at the end everybody ends up being screwed ten or eleven times eludes their attention and will probably continue to do so for many many years.
No, I am from Europe, and in Europe we are told, that the US is the holy grail of free market ... in the US, everything is better as in our countries, and that is the reason, we have to shape them by this role model of freedom and Democracy! That is also the reason, we constructed the EU with all its strictly democratic possibilities for corporations to screw up the European commission and don't have to deal with stupid local politicians that always have some doubts (European commission has never doubts, that corporations have the right thing to say ... as long as they are big enough and can afford it ...) -- btw. we also have the European parliament, but the constructors of the system had the foresight to give them no ability at all to come in between the right things and the commission -- the European parliament is somewhat for the EU what the Queen of England is for the British. Costly, but has nothing to say, that the Commission did not dictate.
But thank you for the little insight into the political system. Though I don't understand to much what this Congress, Senate and whatsoever are all about ...
>>> in Europe we are told, that the US is the holy grail of free market
The same forces opposing freedom in Europe exist in US. The US Constitution sometimes slows them down (esp. in regards like freedom of speech, which in Europe is commonly restricted) but they still claim many successes.
Then again, there's probably the difference in approaches in Europe and US. US constitution starts with "We the people" and the EU constitution project starts with [1] "HIS MAJESTY THE KING OF THE BELGIANS, /.../, HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN OF THE UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT BRITAIN AND NORTHERN IRELAND" and so it goes on.
Then again, it was rejected, so maybe there's hope yet :)
My point was that the Model S is not a car for the poor huddled masses, and that if anyone could "afford" to purchase political power, it would be the people driving luxury auto-mobiles.
Tesla car costs under six figures, you need much more to buy even a local political power, and state-wide you probably need 3-4 orders of magnitude more.
Sometimes, it just seems to me the land of free market for those that can afford it?