Economy
Most of us have taken it to be one of the few salutary effects of this recession that Americans’ debt habits appear to have shifted somewhat. Blogger Les Jones suggests that we’ve overestimated that result: It turns out that the belt-tightening interpretation may not have been true in the least. If the data below is…
It’s as if, even when they’re claiming to be legislating on behalf of small businesses, Obama and the Democrats can’t resist binding small businesses: But under a little-publicized provision in the bill, mom-and-pop owners of triple-deckers, duplexes, condos and other such rental real estate will have to obtain the names, addresses and federal tax identification…
To be fair, Kenneth Rogoff does maintain some balance: While tax cuts enhance long-term productivity, expanding the government sector is hardly a recipe for economic vitality. There are surely many useful activities for the government to undertake in a market economy, but a frenzied orgy of stimulus spending is not conducive to rational discussion of…
John Kostrzewa mentions, as if it should be a surprise, that temporary tax gimmicks have been as unable to spur the economy as giving away loads of money: The federal housing tax credit was supposed to be the bridge between a dead real estate market in early 2009 and a recovery this year. The idea…
Victor Davis Hanson has an interesting post at National Review’s The Corner, on why borrowing more money won’t act as a stimulus in the same way that deficit spending during World War II did (he’s reacting to a Paul Krugman column based on that premise). Hanson provides lots of macro-level historical detail, but the fundamental…
This article, by Neil Downing, is a bit hard to take: Despite a recession, record floods and high unemployment, Rhode Island managed at least one achievement this year — a state government budget surplus. Preliminary figures posted Wednesday show that the state recorded a $17.7-million surplus for the year ended June 30, even though it…
Randell Hoven (h/t) uses CBO figures and a simple chart to put the lie to the now familiar claims that the Iraq and Afghanistan wars and Bush tax cuts caused a $3 Trillion budget deficit. The CBO breaks that cost down over the eight calendar years of 2003-2010. Below is a picture of federal deficits…
If an article by the Associated Press’s Jeannine Aversa is any indication, the road to economic recovery remains a mystery to mainstream journalists: The Federal Reserve has little power left to lift the economy out of its rut. Congress, with an election looming, has no appetite for more stimulus. Shoppers are reluctant to spend, and…
Matt and I discussed the federal government’s billion dollar giveaways to states to make up for their poor management and failure to adjust to the economic times, on last night’s Matt Allen Show. Stream by clicking here, or download it.
It seems to me that explanations for the continuing recession are such that it’s no longer appropriate to blame the causes of the initial downturn, much less the U.S. administration in power at the time: Companies learned during the recession to do more with less, and with uncertainties about consumer spending, the broader economy and…