Wheelan for Congress

It is typical when discussing wise public policy from the economic perspective, and the reasons that they do not often translate into legislation, to have a student ask why there are not more economists in Congress. I usually respond that a platform full of economic platitudes is not often a politically popular platform. For instance, it is often easier to earn votes by pressing for protection of American industry with trade barriers than to explain the benefits of free trade. It is often easier to earn votes by fighting for the common man by increasing in the minimum wage than to explain how the policy ends up hurting low skilled workers.

Well, one of our own is running for Congress. Charles Wheelan, formally of the Economist magazine and the author of Naked Economics (scary title, good book) is running for the Illinois seat vacated by Rahm Emanuel.

Here is his platform:

At a time of unique challenges to the global financial system, it is imperative to have members of Congress with a sophisticated understanding of economics.

Economic stimulus that includes government spending should be carefully designed to ensure that only projects that have social value are funded. Infrastructure projects, identified by an objective panel, that likely would have been pursued without special funds are good candidates. If there are insufficient projects meeting a high cost-benefit threshold, additional stimulus should come in the form of tax cuts.

Any mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States should be pursued through market mechanisms that raise revenue, which can be used to reduce the personal, corporate and/or payroll tax.

The U.S. should make long-term investments in human capital, particularly in early childhood education for low-income and disadvantaged children.

Congress should promote free trade and work to reduce trade barriers around the globe. The best way to deal with the political costs of trade and the economic dislocation caused by international competition is to create a meaningful safety net for displaced workers.

Tax reform is necessary to improve the equity, efficiency and simplicity of the tax code. A priority of tax reform should be a reduction in the number of special incentives that narrow the tax base, induce tax avoidance and increase compliance costs.

The U.S. must deal with the looming fiscal obligations created by our entitlement programs: Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security. Our current economic situation justifies increased deficits now, but today's policy must be attentive to the need for fiscal balance over the next several decades.


Check out Wheelan's website, The Naked Economist. Also check out the website Economists for Wheelan. Thanks to the Mankiw site for the link.