Last week, Congressman Nick Joe Rahall claimed in a statement about federal money being spent on a new project at the Marshall University Medical School that:
“This is the perfect prescription any doctor of economics, worth his pie
charts, would write for the economic health of our region, all of
southern West Virginia, and for our nation,” said Rahall. “From a
federal perspective, this school makes sense, not only to forge a needed
link in our supply chain of pharmacists to keep the nation healthy, but
as an economic engine, this school joins a host of Marshall vehicles to
drive jobs in our local economy.”
The problem is that Congressman Rahall is dead wrong on the economic aspect. Maybe there is a demonstrated need for investment in health care in Southern West Virginia, maybe not. But that is where the congressman makes his strongest case.
Rahall's comments are flawed when it comes to economics. As Stephen Moore, economics editor of the Wall Street Journal points out at every opportunity, government spending is not a stimulus for overall economic growth. All it does is take from one and give to another. There is no measurable benefit.
Washington D.C. officials love to trumpet how their economy has stayed ahead of national indicators and use it as an example of how deficit spending spurs economic activity. What they do not acknowledge, however, is that they had to take money from elsewhere, Alaska, Nevada, West Virginia, Texas, etc. to fund the Leviathan that is our federal bureaucracy. Keynesian economics is only robbing Peter to subsidize Paul.
No comments:
Post a Comment