Brooks Says Stimulus Bill Was Too Large; Krugman Says It Was Too Small. I say it was just about right -- because it was precisely what we were going to get in the political climate that existed last year, especially after Obama won the presidency and not McCain. I believe what it shows, as I've said before, is that the term 'limited government' is redundant. There is only so much the government can do -- and it has helped us tremendously -- but it can't do everything or wave a magic wand and suddenly make all things better. Our economy is too dynamic for that, too unpredictable, and increasingly reliant upon global factors beyond our control. That's also why it is a bit simple-minded to make a direct comparison between our country's economy to any other, which is why Brooks' comparison to Germany fails the smell test, as does Krugman's previous comparisons to Japan's lost decade.
I wish there were 11 million jobs that could be created tomorrow. There aren't. That's the cold, hard reality, the one thing about this economic debate that can not be spun.
