Stabenow: Republicans want to 'create as much pain as possible'

Sen. Debbie Stabenow came right out and said what lots of Democrats think in a conference call with reporters today. "If [Republicans] can stop the recovery from occurring, if they can create as much pain as possible, people will be angry and will not vote at all or will vote against those in the majority," she sighed. "This is a very cynical political strategy."

I'd say it's all less sinister than that: People convince themselves of what's in their political best interest. When the economy tanked in 2001 and Republicans stood to bear the blame, suddenly tax cuts -- that is to say, deficit-financed countercyclical spending -- were a great idea. “Because the economy is slowing down, I believe it is vital that Congress pass a pro-growth tax cut," explained Dick Armey. They went on to pass another round of tax cuts in 2003, which were also deficit-financed, and the Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit, which was, you guessed it, paid for by adding to the deficit.

Now that unemployment is mired at 9.7 percent and the Republicans stand to gain from the public thinking the Democrats are failures, deficit-financed countercyclical spending suddenly seems like a terrible idea. Deficits in general seem like a terrible idea, though they're much more defensible now than they were in 2003 (and it's much cheaper for the government to borrow money, and thus run deficits, than it was in 2003).

I don't question the sincerity with which Republicans are concerned about the deficit. But if they were in power and the economic fundamentals looked the way they do, I have no doubt that they'd be passing stimulus bills, and quick. Voters judge the majority party based on economic conditions across the country. The minority party benefits from the failure of the majority and is able to make the majority fail by massing 41 senators together to filibuster legislation. And as even the most conservative economist would agree, incentives affect behavior. This is all playing out much as you'd expect. The question is whether this is a wise way to run the government.

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