Larry Summers is a very good economist who has written many important articles, but a fearless truth teller? That's what David Leonhardt calls him in the NYT today. I have yet to hear Summers advocate any policies that would cause serious pain to Wall Street.There are few more blatant problems in the U.S. economy than its bloated financial sector. Taking on the financial industry is something that would take real courage, given the industry's influence in the Democratic party.The fearless truth teller might want to examine a very good piece written twenty year ago that outlined the case for a securities transaction tax. Yes, that article was written by an economist named Larry Summers. Leonhardt also finds it very impressive that Summers recognized that the economy was facing a serious downturn last December. I suppose that puts him ahead of Senator McCain telling us that the economy's fundamentals are sound back in September, but recognizing the imbalances created by the housing bubble in December of 2007 hardly makes one a visionary.
--Dean Baker
