During the period between World War I and World War II several countries in Europe adopted political systems that combined authoritarian governments with an economic system which consisted of a large public sector and a substantial private sector, which, however, was strictly controlled by the state, in terms of policy and business decisions.  This economic system was called the corporate state, and was that adopted by the regimes of Mussolini in Italy, Salazar in Portugal and Franco in Spain. 

The Obama administration has been accused by opponents of moving towards socialism, but the measures taken so far are much closer to the corporate state model.  The government is taking control of, participating in and/or providing "guidance" to both financial and corporate entitities very prominent and important in the economic life of the country.  Capital participation is assumed, corporate officers are fired by the government, demands are made to take certain decisions and enterprises which have taken loan money from the government under one or the other of the various plans adopted since mid-2008 are now told that they will have to ask permission and fulfill various provisions to be allowed to repay the American taxpayer!  This can only be explained by the desire to maintain control, because the reason given is absurd. 

If this trend continues The United States will become not a welfare state or a social democratic or socialist country but a corporate state.  The expansion of state power is beyond anything seen since the Great Depression and it can be convincingly argued that it goes beyond the measures of the Franklin Roosevelt administration, which limited itself to issuing "administrative guidance" to private entitities.  Let's not forget, however, that when the Supreme Court struck down several Roosevelt administration measures, the president's response was to try to increase the size of the court so he could pack it with his appointees.  This was too much for Congress, however. 

Will Congress or the court now step in to slow or stop or reverse the executive's headlong rush to create a new corporate state?  We shall see.