Rent control is popular with renters because the rent is too damn high. You can figure that one out without assigning motives to people you've never met.
I don’t know why you’re assuming bad faith here. I’ve met rent control advocates, talked to them, and read their detailed explanations of why they think there should be rent control. They often believe exactly what I said, and always have some principled explanation for why it’s not fair that the rent is high; despite that one guy in New York, I’ve never actually met anyone who argues for rent control on the grounds of pure self-interest.
