Hello Lisa,
"He who pays the piper chooses the tune." If the companies accept federal support, they have to accept what comes with it.
In addition, much of what the federal government does is quite successful. Would you really want to privatize Air Traffic Control, for example? Or the management of Social Security, Medicare, or the Center for Disease Control? How many tragedies were avoided because the FDA refused to permit the sale of Thalidomide? How many lives were saved when the US government distributed the polio vaccine?
On the other hand Ford allowed the sale of the Pinto knowing that a rear end collision could cause the gas tank to explode. It was cheaper for them to settle the law suits after the accidents than recall the car before the accidents. The same decision was made by GM when they realized a design flaw in school buses. They decided it was cheaper to pay the victims than recall the buses.
