John, we have a strong difference in memory.
"John D. Giorgis" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote
... What [Brad DeLong] doesn't tell you in this article is that a
lot of respected Economists would certainly advise *against* a
balanced budget over the last few years,
As I remember, Brad DeLong was one of those economists. He said that
in a recession you should run a deficit. His criticism was that the
Bush Administration spent money wastefully.
Moreover, a major current issue is whether it is a good idea to run a
deficit more than five years in the future. If my memory serves me
right, DeLong is against a long term deficit.
What Brad DeLong also doesn't tell you in this article ... is that
the budget surpluses of the 1990's literally came out of nowhere.
I remember DeLong writing exactly the opposite. As I remember, he
wrote that in the early 1990's he and others in the Treasury spent a
good deal of effort figuring out a politically acceptable plan to end
the Reagan-Bush era deficits. According to DeLong, the budget
surpluses of the 1990's came out of a hard political design effort.
It may be that my memory is misleading me; but I respect it pretty well.
In any event, in your message, you come across as someone who is
avoiding discussion of the current Bush policy, which various groups
have projected to produce a deficit in the years 2009 - 2014.
I am sure that impression is misleading since you also say that
I am the first person to say that if President Bush cannot balance
the budget with a Republican Congress ... then it serves to reason
that much of the current Republican economic formula will be
discredited.
which means you must consider the 2009 - 2014 deficit projections to
be wrong. Or do you consider the current Republican economic formula
to be discredited? (I really do not think you favor the kind of
weakening of the US that long term deficits induce.)
What do you think of the 2009 - 2014 projections? (Obviously, I seek
nothing precise; I know that situations change. Bearing in mind
demographic and social security trends, medical trends, anticipated
dangers abroad, a mix of good and bad economic years, what do you
think in general, and how do you compare that to what you would have
made of the year 2000 projection, presuming the same conditions?)
Why is the current Bush economic policy -- the one in place now, not a
hypothetical future one -- a good or bad policy for the long run?
--
Robert J. Chassell Rattlesnake Enterprises
http://www.rattlesnake.com GnuPG Key ID: 004B4AC8
http://www.teak.cc [EMAIL PROTECTED]
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