In the US, state intervention was viewed as corrective rather than regulatory of business behavior. American deregulation and regulatory reforms are today emulated around the globe. Adam Smith's idea of the invisible hand seems to be finally catching up with the political forces. In Europe, however, there remains the fear that the inequalities generated by a free market will lower the quality of life. Experience shows, however, that in the search for solutions to economic problems states have no information superior to that of the markets.
States tend to establish claims and foster inefficiencies that are unsustainable in the long run.
This is not to say that European concerns are unwarranted, nor that the US has done a perfect job of allocating resources to benefit all of its citizenry. What it does argue is that free markets enhance the ability of an economy to generate wealth, which gives a country a better opportunity to provide economic well-being to its population. State provided benefits not only inhibit growth, they are also difficult to dismantle. The recently ousted French government's attempt to improve the efficiency of the economy was met by resistance and electoral disaster. The election results reflect, in part, the different natures of European and American capitalism.