Tuesday, May 8, 2018

Wait a Minute: the Laffer Curve Was a Fraud, Wasn't It?

5/7/18 Washington Times:
The federal government took in a record tax haul in April en route to its biggest-ever monthly budget surplus, the Congressional Budget Office said, as a surging economy left Americans with more money in their paychecks — and this more to pay to Uncle Sam.
All told the government collected $515 billion and spent $297 billion, for a total monthly surplus of $218 billion. That swamped the previous monthly record of $190 billion, set in 2001.
CBO analysts were surprised by the surplus, which was some $40 billion more than they’d guessed at less than a month ago.
Obviously, the check to IRS from me and my fellow malcontents is a one time thing, but it suggests that the "experts" are not as good at predicting revenues as they think.  A rising economy might indeed overwhelm the nominal deficit.

1 comment:

  1. " A rising economy might indeed overwhelm the nominal deficit. "

    Well, until Congress notices and spends more to compensate, which they always do.

    ReplyDelete