In his blog today, Krugman says:

“Like Brad, I’m not too happy with the policy justifications we’re getting from the administration. It’s perfectly clear that the stimulus was too small; I think they know that too. But they’ve made a political judgment that (a) they can’t push another round through and (b) the thing to do right now is defend the policy they already have.”

I am an avid reader of Krugman, and even though I tend toward Republican leanings, I have found the Republican fiscal policy of late, well, let’s just say it is misguided.  Of course, the drum beatings from the likes of Hannity and Limbaugh (the de-facto leader of the Republican part, God help us) are that Obama is spending the country into oblivion.

And we have spent a lot of money, not much of which has really made its way into the economy yet.  I am not sure who to blame for that, but the general consensus is that the second half of this year this money should trickle into the economy.  Even Nouriel Roubini, who is not known for his cheery prognostications, was more upbeat in his Friday postings that usual.  So the Republican party finds itself in a difficult position here, trying to use the old methods (think: tax cuts) to remedy a situation that is entirely different from other situations where this strategy worked.  And who really benefits from tax cuts?  Ummm…I think you know the answer.

Krugman stated in the early discussions on the Obama stimulus package that he felt the amount of the package was too small to do the job, and he has consistently maintained that position.  Now he laments that the political environment is not conducive to upping the ante on future stimulus packages and we find ourselves mired in a longer recession than we care to endure.

Sometimes economics is just plain at odds with society, and sometimes economics is just plain “in left field with no mitt.”   But on this one, I think I will side with Krugman, he had it right from the start.