>"Fiscal policy would be tighter"-- yep, a trillion dollars would not have
>been given away to the wealthy and the deficit would not be heading for $170
>billion this year. I understand Keynesianism, but a lot of leftists take it
>to a point of fetishism, as if running a deficit shows some kind of virtue by
>the Reagans and Bushs of the world.
Nathan, the U.S. economy is in a rather vulnerable state. The tax cuts were skewed to the wealthy, but not entirely, and spending is rising above all previous restraints. Gore said that he would have cut spending in a recession, "just like a business." Permanent deficits are no good, but procyclical fiscal policy like Gore advocated is right out of the 19th century. If it weren't for fiscal irresponsibility, the unemployment rate would be 7% now.
Doug