A few weeks back, the Obama administration declared that it “strongly supports House passage of H.R. 4626. The repeal of the antitrust exemption in the McCarran-Ferguson Act as it applies to the health insurance industry …” The House overwhelmingly passed the bill 406-19. If only those votes came from a principle against crony-capitalism, in which the ability to navigate Washington DC’s halls of power is more important than delivering good customer service. If that were the case then these same pols would repeal the asinine Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961. That law, according to an excellent commentary by Manhattan Institute’s Steven Malanga, allowed the owners in each of the major pro sports leagues to band together and negotiate broadcasting rights as one body. In granting these rights Congress determined that “the public interest in viewing professional sports warrants an accommodation with minimal sacrifice of antitrust principles.” Protecting the NFL through “minimal sacrifice of antitrust principles” provides owners with cushy “TV licensing deals, worth about $3.7 billion a year.” It also allows a “special arrangement in which the networks will pay the league even if a strike cancels games.” Imagine having to pay for that burger and fries even if the

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