Oct 11th, 2008 at 1:05 pm
McCain Can’t Find 100 Economists to Endorse His Plan
This is pretty funny — the McCain campaign’s letter of 100 economists warning of the dire impact of Barack Obama’s policies on the economy is only signed by ninety people.
Note that the American Economics Association has over 17,000 members. And the McCain campaign wasn’t being very discriminating in looking for signatories — many of the people listed work at rightwing think tanks and as Jon Chait observes, two list their affiliation as “McCain-Palin 2008.” This means that out of thousands of economists in the United States, McCain wasn’t able to scratch up even 100 to sign his document. And then on top of that, the economists who are supporting McCain don’t support his new housing scheme.
27 Responses to “McCain Can’t Find 100 Economists to Endorse His Plan”
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October 11th, 2008 at 1:18 pm
Chait seems to think that George Schultz’s presence on the list is the most damning case of a non-economist used to lard up the list. Schultz is clearly a political figure, but he is also an economist. I say that as a larval economist.
October 11th, 2008 at 1:37 pm
Yes, I got the email to AEA members looking for signatures. The list of signers is actually more impressive than I’d expected, but all of them are ‘the usual suspects’ and most are pretty old. Like DeLong I’m unhappy Frank Diebold (at U Penn) signed.
One of the signers has told me in the past that he only signs these letters for professional reasons, since he is at a ‘right wing’ think tank where it would not look good if he didn’t sign.
October 11th, 2008 at 2:02 pm
There;s a calculated reason McCain can’t stop bringing up Obama’s “terrorist connections…”
http://sunstateactivist.org/ssablog/
October 11th, 2008 at 2:37 pm
I laughed when I read the e-mail — honestly thinking it was another doom-and-gloom political spam e-mail. Luckily most of us are apolitical as far as our economic projections go. Even if an economist supports McCain or Obama politically, he or she knows better than to believe that the alternative would be the complete and utter destruction of our economy.
October 11th, 2008 at 2:51 pm
George Schultz is an economist because he got a degree in industrial economics 40 years ago, but in the meantime spent his career diplomacy?
I guess that makes me a historian based on my graduate degree, even though I haven’t put it to any use and have gone into a different field entirely.
Anyhow, I’ll grant you Schultz, but I’ll wonder what Sanjai Bhagat is doing on this list. He has a degree in Finance, which is not economics. http://leeds-faculty.colorado.edu/bhagat/Home.htm
Then there’s Todd Buchholtz, who best I can determine writes pro-business “position papers” for the Chamber of Commerce and was formerly a political operative - “Director of Economic Policy” - at the White House. Also he inveighs against trial lawyers.
And how about John Cogan. He’s a “Senior Fellow” at the Hoover Institution, which is otherwise known as a conservative advocacy organization.
Then there’s Ike Brannon. At least that guy puts his affiliation down as “McCain-Palin 2008″. I’ll give him props for honesty.
Chris DeMuth. He’s president of AEI, which means he spends the bulk of his time fundraising for a conservative advocacy organization. Maybe in the distant recesses of his mind he recalls taking courses in economics.
Now, some of these people: Barro, Feldstein, Becker, Buchanan, are brilliant economists. So that’s four people.
But Eric Hanushek? He does the bulk of his research on school choice, which I’m not saying isn’t valuable research. I’m just saying, it doesn’t mean I should care much what his view is of McCain’s proposals on this subject.
And Douglas Holtz-Eakin? Haven’t I heard him on the TV bashing Obama over William Ayres? Meh.
I could go on, but you get my point: This is a pretty pathetic list that barely gets to 60 legitimate economists.
October 11th, 2008 at 5:48 pm
Hey, I used to have one of those guys, Robert Heidt, as a professor for an anti-trust law class at Indiana.
He once used the phrase “jew down” to describe hard negotiation.
October 11th, 2008 at 6:24 pm
What I find odd is that they call it 100 when it isn’t. Why not release a list of 90 economists and leave it at that?
October 11th, 2008 at 7:24 pm
Yes, I trust economists who can’t tell the difference between 90 and 100. A whole bunch of them is even more compelling.
October 12th, 2008 at 9:50 am
This blog posting — which is both hilarious & pathetic — is featured on RealityChex.com at http://www.realitychex.com, a great source for the latest news & best opinions on the presidential race. And RealityChex.com ThinksLeft.
October 13th, 2008 at 12:56 pm
More than 330 economists have now signed the statement in opposition to Senator Obama’s economic policies. Also, more than 530 economists have signed a statement in support of Senator McCain’s economic plan. You can find both statements at http://www.economistsformccain.com.
October 13th, 2008 at 1:29 pm
Surely, he could find 100 hacks if he wanted to, but agree that i don’t understand why he DIDN’T. Some of these people are legit, super genuii: Becker, Barro, Feldstein, Murphy are serious names, but I can speak as a former colleague of two of them and they share a general pessimism for politicians and I don’t think that they are exactly enthusiastic about J. McCain–I’m sure they regard him as a hack all the same.
Also, can someone clarify Douglas Holtz-Eakin’s academic background. I guess i know he was head of the CBO and, for a short while, Chief Economist at the Council of Economic Advisors–but how did he get there? His official bio does not mention any date before 2001 and I’ve never read anything he published other than a press-release.
October 13th, 2008 at 11:32 pm
I’d been approached but was warned by my colleagues that it would likely make me the target of reprisals.
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