Kurt Eichenwald Profile picture
Aug 13, 2019 12 tweets 3 min read Read on X
1. People need to understand issues of the economy. We are witnessing the most grotesque prevision of Keynesianism in history, with GOPrs pretending all is being driven by supply side economics. The reality: We are floating on air, and the landing is going to be horrific....
2...ive long known that the GOP is fiscally irresponsible, but never understood if it is because they are stupid or just willing to do anything for rich people. Truth is, given what they have done, it does not matter anymore.

A low, low lesson in Keynesianism: The government...
3...utilizes fiscal policy to deal with inevitable ebbs and flows in the economy. When an economy is struggling, the government is supposed to cut taxes and raise spending - increasing deficits to flood the economy with cash. That helps push transactions and has a multiplier...
4...wealth effect. (On monetary policy, the Fed is supposed to lower rates - if it is not stagflation - to decrease the cost of money.) Those lead to economic recovery.

On the flip side, when the economy is strong, government is supposed to offset the debt accumulated...
5...during the recovery by increasing taxes and lowering spending. If that starts to kick inflation up, then the fed comes in and raises rates.

This is simple, commonsense fiscal management: Borrow and spend when things are bad, recoup that debt when things are good.

The GOP..
6...has done the exact opposite. Everything we are seeing in this economy right now is just being bolstered up by the perversion of Keynesianism.

In a strong economy, we cut taxes and increased spending. It is like spraying the fire extinguisher into the pool. Yes, it will...
7...create more liquid, but it is all being wasted for current interests. But when the house is on fire - when the economy falls, as it must - there is nothing left in the extinguisher. Deficits will explode unlike anything we have ever seen. We cannot raise taxes/cut spending...
8...in a bad recession, because that will push us off the cliff and into depression. So our borrowings will have to go through the roof. Borrowers might panic - we will be filling up our annual budget with more and more interest on the debt, crowding out other expenditures -...
9...and we will have to convince them that yes, we will keep paying interest. If a democrat is in office then, the GOPrs will start saying "oh, what difference does it make if we default" just like they did last time.

To fully understand the recklessness of the GOP....
10...not only did they cut taxes and raise spending in a booming economy, BUT trump has been demanding that the fed also cut rates in a booming economy. They refused, thank god, but finally started cutting when they saw the recession peeking over the horizon....
11..the bottom line: This is not an economy - this is a market manipulation. We are living on borrowed money, feeling fat and happy when we should be using this moment to keep the deficit going down, as Obama did, and not explode it beyond comprehension....
12...we live on credit cards, thinking we're rich. When the bill comes due - when the bottom drops out of a economy manipulated through perverted Keynesianism - we'll learn the consequences of this profligacy.

And all the GOP will care about then is saying "it's the dems fault!"

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More from @kurteichenwald

Sep 24, 2023
Unsurprisingly, @RealPNavarro has no idea what the Mayo Clinic actually said. And the idea that doctors in ICUs are going to make medical decisions with critically ill pts based on CNN reports is crazy. But what do studies actually say, and why is hydro use so limited? Well...
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Sep 15, 2023
Media who interview CEO Barra of @GM need to understand: When asked about difference between how much of an increase she receives to reach her compensation ($30 mill - higher than all but Tesla) compared to workers, she says "It's performance based." What a croc. Here's why.../1
...For most, it's hard for average person to understand because the compensation standards in GM's proxy is loaded with undefined acronyms - TSR, LTIP, NEO, etc. But when you know the meaning, you see that her compensation is rigged. A good percentage of her comp is based on...
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Aug 15, 2023
Would reporters *please* stop saying RICO law in Georgia is intended to be applied to organized crime. That is *false.* In fact, it is wrong on so many levels that it is shocking reporters keep saying it. They are clearly referring to federal RICO - where they are also wrong.../1
...federal RICO (not part of the Georgia case) has been and - according G. Robert Blakey, the man who wrote the statute - was intended both to apply to the activities of organized crime *and* other criminal enterprises, including white collar crime. From Blakey in 1989:.../2 Image
...the reason Blakey is discussing white collar crime is because, at that time, RICO was being used to bludgeon Wall Street fraud. But the federal law was specifically written to address a pattern of criminal activity that involved an "enterprise" such as a corrupt company.../3
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Jul 24, 2023
Florida wants to teach about "skills" slaves obtained in the antebellum south because "beneficent" slaveholders taught their slaves to read, write, blacksmithing, etc. They say this is supported by "scholars." Well, let's see what the scholars really say.../1
...first, let's start with blacksmithing, since this is specifically what DeSantis mentioned yesterday. This, more than anything, underscores the brutal ignorance of the GOP on history, and their apparent belief that Africans arrived here as ignorant, incompetent savages.../2
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Jul 20, 2023
Wow. This is the biggest pile of nonsense I have ever read. A few problems:
1. Viktor Shokin never conducted a criminal investigation of Burisma. There was a criminal investigation in *Britain* of Mykola Zlochevsky, founder of Burisma, for purportedly laundering money stolen.../1
...when Zlochevsky served as Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources in Ukraine through British banks. Britain attempted to get documents for its case from Ukraine and Shokin *blocked* it.

2. Shokin also blocked all investigations of Ukranian oligarchs, which is what led.../2
...the EU, overseas investment firms and ultimately the IMF to either pull out investment/loans or threaten to unless Shokin was fired.

3. Shokin finally left when his deputy publicly resigned, announcing on national TV the details of Shokin's corruption re: oligarchs.../3
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Jun 10, 2023
I've long said, despite the criminality depicted in Bragg's statement of facts, the linkage to tax fraud was weak and the most damning part - the AIM coordination - was a federal crime, so not charged. IOW, I wouldnt be surprised if it didn't survive a motion to dismiss. But.../1
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...these are people who despise Trump. They are his guys, deeply supportive of him. Add to that the devastating tape (which likely contains even more than depicted in the indictment) and the testimony of is own PAC guy, and the violations of disseminating classified info are../3
Read 17 tweets

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