"Nothing is so permanent as a temporary government program"

Milton Friedman is recommending that when a federal government initiates a program, it is not likely that it will be ended or phased out, even if it was intended to be a momentary or short-term service to a particular issue. He implies that government programs tend to become long-term components of the system, even when they have outlasted their effectiveness or are no longer pertinent. The quote recommends a basic skepticism towards the long-term effectiveness of federal government programs and a belief that their unexpected effects frequently outweigh their benefits.