Asymptosis: Always Approaching

Month: September 2008

  • Inequality is Bad Because it Hurts the Republican Brand

    I thought I'd pointed this out in a previous post, but apparently not. When you hear Republicans speaking negatively of America's extreme and growing inequality, it's only because it might hurt their brand and their electoral prospects. David Frum is the poster child. In this week's NYT Magazine, he's nice enough make my point for…

  • Even Fox Sez McCain’s Lying About Taxes

    Major Garrett: McCain’s TV commercials assailing Obama’s tax policy contain serious distortions, if not out-right lies. On Aug. 8, FactCheck.org, published this report on a spate of new McCain TV spots on Obama and taxes. Read it here: www.factcheck.org/elections-2008/more_tax_deceptions.html That report followed one in July that raised similar concerns about the truthfulness of the McCain…

  • Pro-Growth Republicans? Get Real

    Republicans like to claim that they’re the party of growth and prosperity. Even though all the facts say otherwise. I’ve pointed out repeatedly that when you compare a lot of developed countries over decades, you see that lower taxes and smaller government don’t result in faster growth. Tax cuts are an effective vote-buying political pander…

  • Mankiw Endorses Obama, Slams Palin

    The former chair of Bush II's Council of Economic Advisors, in his manifesto, Smart Taxes: An Open Invitation to Join the Pigou Club (pdf): "It is not a stretch to believe that more thought about an issue leads to more reliable conclusions." Okay well, not explicitly. And in any case he does contradict this sentiment…

  • Corruption: Are Pubs Worse than Dems?

    My friend Steve can’t resist taking a somewhat tangential jab at me regarding corruption: Dems versus Pubs. For those who aren’t in the know, he and I have had this conversation already, and after looking at his evidence, I found myself hard-pressed to argue that in the legislative branch, over decades, the Pubs are necessarily…

  • Obama and Small Business Cap Gains: Where’s the Beef?

    My friend Steve Broback asks a very good question: Obama says he will: …eliminate all capital gains taxes on small and start-up businesses to encourage innovation and job creation. This is all that’s mentioned about this elusive break in the “Barack Obama’s Plan For Small Business” PDF on his site. I don’t understand. Where and…

  • Peggy Noonan’s Right: It’s Over

    What do they really think? Caught on open mikes yesterday, three top political analysts–including two being long-time top Republican operatives–said what they really think about the Palin choice ("cynical"), and about McCain's prospects following that choice. The money quote, from Peggy Noonan: "It's over." Peggy's right. On fivethirtyeight.com, Obama's odds of winning have gone from…