In his latest Newsweek column, Ezra Klein notes that American businesses “can expand, they’re just waiting around to do so.”
Instead of exploring legitimate reasons for businesses to “wait around,” such as the economic uncertainty generated by an overly intrusive government, Klein seems to want to throw more taxpayer money at the problem:
So what can we do to speed things along? More government stimulus?either
through direct spending or further tax cuts?could offer some quick
help, but Senate Republicans won?t allow anything large enough to make
much of an impact. The Federal Reserve could step into the breach, but
so far it?s been reluctant to do so.
Why is “more government stimulus” a bad idea? John Hood analyzes that subject today:
The truth has become evident to any fair-minded
observer: having the federal government borrow gobs of money from
investors to redistribute to government employees and contractors is not
a serious plan for rebuilding the American economy. It is merely a plan
to encourage greater dependency on federal deficits and pave the way
for a future, permanent increase in government spending and taxes.It is, in other words, a plan to turn the U.S. into a European-style
welfare state. Given the chronic economic malaise and public
disaffection plaguing much of Europe, only a fool would see such a
project as one of stimulus.
