Robert Kuttner says austerity is perverse economics and self-defeating politics.
The austerity argument defies economic logic. The economy is performing far below capacity. To break the vicious circle of high unemployment, depressed consumer demand, weak business investment, and damaged banks, government should be doing more, not less. State and local budget cuts, totaling $460 billion over three years, neutralize about two-thirds of federal Recovery Act spending. President Barack Obama‘s February 2009 stimulus package helped, but not enough to solve the problem.
