Economist Paul Krugman weighs in on the spending freeze, "It’s appalling on every level' he says. This is really a return to the principles of Herbert Hoover, Ronald Reagan, and Bill Clinton. Hoover did it in 1937 and it led to a one-year mini-recession. Reagan did it in 1982 and it led to a recession. Clinton did it and slashed the social safety net, although he was able to leverage it to raise taxes on the rich slightly, which actually led to a budget surplus. So far there's no indication that Obama intends to follow Clinton's lead in raising taxes - instead he appears to simply be appeasing Republicans. Has Obama just become a Herbert Hoover Republican?
Cash for Geezers? Congressman Dennis Kucinich is unveiling a major jobs program he claims will add one million jobs for struggling Americans to find work. Aides to Kucinich say his new initiative includes allowing older workers, in their early 60s, retiring earlier, making room for younger workers who have been struggling to find jobs. Kucinich says he will introduce his jobs program bill this week on Capitol Hill. If enough Boomers left the job market, it would even flip the current dynamic of too-many-people-chasing-too-few-jobs upside down, and create a tight labor markets. Tight labor markets drive up wages. And as wages go up, tax revenues – which are paying for Social Security (among other things) – would increase. Everybody wins.
