“The Economist” Picks Obama

Here’s what you need to know about The Economist  magazine.

1. It is based in London and is considered the world-wide paper for serious examination of economic issues,
2. It leans right … as do most of their readers.

True, they endorsed Obama four years ago, but clearly they are not Obama fans. In fact, their endorsement article knocks the President for a number of what they see as failings. (And truthfully, I agree with a few of them.)

Nevertheless, they look at Mr. Romney and come to the conclusion that he is a far worse alternative.

Here’s just one of the damning paragraphs (emphasis added):

Yet far from being the voice of fiscal prudence, Mr Romney wants to start with huge tax cuts (which will disproportionately favour the wealthy), while dramatically increasing defence spending. Together those measures would add $7 trillion to the ten-year deficit. He would balance the books through eliminating loopholes (a good idea, but he will not specify which ones) and through savage cuts to programmes that help America’s poor (a bad idea, which will increase inequality still further). At least Mr Obama, although he distanced himself from Bowles-Simpson, has made it clear that any long-term solution has to involve both entitlement reform and tax rises. Mr Romney is still in the cloud-cuckoo-land of thinking you can do it entirely through spending cuts: the Republican even rejected a ratio of ten parts spending cuts to one part tax rises. Backing business is important, but getting the macroeconomics right matters far more.

The full endorsement article is here.

And in case you didn’t notice, in the past two days General Colin Powell (Secretary of State under George W. Bush) and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (billionaire businessman, former Republican and now Independent) have endorsed Barack Obama.

Finally, to my fellow citizens in the North East – I hope you and your loved ones survived Sandy and are safe and dry.

Please vote! It IS important.

Thanks for caring about the truth.

Ken

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