Wednesday 3 November 2010

"It's the Economy, Stupid" 20 Years Later: A Message Sent Yesterday Is Likely to Make Things Worse

In the backwash of yesterday's elections, it's worth looking at an interview with James Carville in Saturday's Globe and Mail. He's the guy who told Bill Clinton to focus on the economy during his campaigns, to very good effect. Obama wasn't doing that, to his peril, Carville said.

The exit polls yesterday had people saying that they were worried about the economy and were voting Republican/Tea Party because of it. Fair enough. The big problem is that the solutions the US right is proposing are going to make things worse. The US needs more stimulus not less, and no more tax cuts for the rich.

I'd like to think that Obama and company will start listening to Paul Krugman and Carvile and make the next two years a battleground for economic policy that will do some good. Probably not, and that could be a tragedy for us all.

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