by Dan Mitchell | Sep 18, 2016 | Big Government, Blogs, Europe
When I tell journalists and politicians that the European fiscal situation is worse today than it was immediately prior to the crisis, they don’t believe me. What about all the spending cuts, they ask? What about the draconian austerity? And the Troika-imposed fiscal...
by Dan Mitchell | Aug 13, 2016 | Big Government, Blogs, Government Spending
I need combat pay. Or maybe some kind of bonus for pain and suffering. First, I had to watch Donald Trump’s incoherent speech on the economy and try to decipher his mish-mash economic plan. And then, without the benefit of a lengthy vacation or counseling for...
by Dan Mitchell | Aug 11, 2016 | Big Government, Blogs, Economics, Government Spending, Taxation
I don’t like election years because the policy debate tends to revolve around the various proposals put forth by candidates. And since those ideas generally don’t make much sense, it’s a frustrating period. But the silver lining to that dark cloud is that it does...
by Dan Mitchell | Aug 4, 2016 | Big Government, Blogs, Economics, Government Spending, Welfare and Entitlements
Does the economic chaos in Greece suggest that government should be bigger? Is Venezuela’s economic collapse evidence that larger governments boost growth? Should we learn from Italy’s pervasive stagnation that public sectors should be expanded? Most people, looking...
by Dan Mitchell | Jun 21, 2016 | Big Government, Blogs, Economics, Government Spending
Japan is the poster child for Keynesian economics. Ever since a bubble popped about 25 years ago, Japanese politician have adopted one so-called stimulus scheme after another. Lots of additional government spending. Plenty of gimmicky tax cuts. All of which were...
