A Q&A With McCain Adviser Douglas Holtz-Eakin

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Car rental.

Jeaccusia of AL 9:51PM April 07, 2010

DL Smith:
Neither of the articles you link discusses the correlation between government size and long-term growth/prosperity.
If you read the Mankiw and Barro articles linked from my link, you'll see what they do say about government size and growth in developed countries:
Mankiw: government size is simply not on his list of items affecting long-term prosperity.
Barro: finds tiny, non-statistically-significant correlations--one positive, one negative.

Steve Roth of WA 4:56PM May 08, 2008

"The economists who have actually studied this have come to ...."
a very different conclusion from the one Steve Roth prefers:
http://gregmankiw.blogspot.com/2006/05/must-read.html
For example, let's let Barro speak for himself on tax rates:
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/04_09/b3872039_mz007.htm

DL Smith of CA 12:09PM April 25, 2008

>there is no way you can tax enough to meet those pressures—and
>if you tried, you would do such harm to the economy that it would ultimately fail
This is a faith-based belief, not grounded in facts.
The economists who have actually studied this have come to very clear conclusions: in developed countries with tax burdens ranging (hugely) from 25-49% of GDP, there is *no correlation* between tax burden and long-term prosperity.
See in particular Barro 1996, and Nijkamp and Poot's 2003 meta-analysis, both discussed and linked here:
http://trueconservative.typepad.com/trueconservative/2008/02/small-governmen.html
It's not clear which is the better metaphor for Grover Norquist's potion—Ken Kesey's Kool-Aid or Jim Jones's. But Holtz-Eakin seems to have been drinking it.

Steve Roth of WA 2:35PM April 23, 2008

The opposition to the carbon tax does not come from the environmental community but rather from business. Businesses assigned the quotas from the cap and trade approach will make out like bandits at the expense of consumers.
For more on the carbon tax see --
http://www.carbontax.org/

Richard A. of CA 11:58AM April 23, 2008

I WANT TO FIX HILLARY CLINTON FOR STAYING WITH BILL WHEN SHE SHOULD HAVE DIVORCED HIM OVER:
1. HIS ANTIMASTURBATION
2. HIS CHEATING ADULTERY
ALSO IM AGAINST HER NOT LISTENING TO ME ABOUT VOTING AGAINST THE ANTI POKER BILL (PHONE CALLS, LETTERS) AND RECEIVING FUNDING FROM HEALTH INSURANCE COMPANIES WHEN THEY ARE ALREADY OVERCHARGING AND AGE DISCRIMINATING. I ALSO BELIEVE LIKE JOE LIEBERMAN THAT BILL CLINTON SHOULD HAVE BEEN IMPEACHED AFTER ILLEGALLY CHEATING ON HIS WIFE.

FRANK TELLS of NY 8:39PM April 14, 2008