Yesterday, we explored how conservatives view deficits, and I noted that National Review's Kevin Williamson, who wrote a piece in May criticizing the Republican establishment's nonsensical approach to tax cuts, hadn't commented on recent comments from prominent Republicans arguing that tax cuts raise revenue. Now he has weighed in, and while he, like me, criticizes the GOP's voodoo economics, blogging isn't as fun when we agree, so let me offer some criticism of my own. Says Williamson:
Tax cuts without spending cuts, spending increases without tax increases: These are not merely irresponsible, they are impossible -- unless you think that nobody is going to pay the debt. You might make a reasonable case that tax cuts without spending cuts are, in some cases, preferable to deficit stimulus spending, especially since the stimulus spending has been channeled to a lot of dumb and wasteful projects. But, broadly speaking, the two things are equivalent. The Democrats prefer unfunded spending, the Republicans unfunded tax cuts. And almost nobody is serious about reducing spending, because spending is where power dwells in Washington.
This pox-on-both-your-houses nonsense is carefully shielded in "preference." While it's true that I prefer eating a pint of Ben and Jerry every day, I know that's unsustainable. Similarly, Williamson may be right about the relative preferences of the two parties, but if you look at recent history, only the Democrats have shown any inkling of restraint, and, just as important, a willingness to make deals that produce responsible budgets. Democrats occasionally overindulge, but Republican politicians are passed out in the kitchen, surrounded by empty cartons of Chunky Monkey.
Ironically, Republican efforts to seek purity on this and all issues make them worse fiscal practitioners, since there is no constituency in the party that thinks moderate tax increases are important. Democrats, at least, have Blue Dogs and moderate Democrats whose preference for tax cuts, however wrong-headed, at least keeps the party honest.
Keep this in mind: With everything that has happened in the last three years that forced the new administration to make expenditures it had no normative preference for, Obama's budget will still result in lower deficits than if we had simply continued Bush administration policies.
-- Tim Fernholz
