Is GOP opposition to tax increases realistic?
They should draw a line in the sand over tax rates but be open to cutting tax expenditures. But they don’t consistently make the distinction. That’s a mistake. For their voters, they feel it’s too complicated to talk about tax rates vs. tax expenditures.
How likely is a double-dip recession?
Not terribly, but I don’t rule it out. When economies have fiscal crises they recover very slowly. There are still good things about our economy — educated workforce, productive capital, no real impediment to investment. We may grow more quickly again.
Your best ideas for job creation?
The focus should be on output and productivity. Let that, not stimulus, produce employment. We should also sign free-trade agreements with Central America, cut back on regulation, and slow entitlement growth so we don’t face huge tax increases in the future.
Thoughts on the administration’s handling of the economy?
One doesn’t get the sense this administration is really pro-business. The sort of things [it] emphasizes seem to put a lot of weight on redistribution, rather than on productivity. That makes some people and employers nervous.
Are default worries the biggest setback to the U.S.?
Yes, but international factors are bearing down too. We’re not getting a big boost in export demand. Europe is in the doldrums. China has slowed. There’s a risk of their inflation getting out of hand. They extended a lot of debts as part of their stimulus.