James Pethokoukis at U.S. News reads my cover story on the next president and the economy and notes correctly that despite what it says on the cover, it doesn’t really offer any prescription for economic growth (I had nothin’ to do with that cover language). Then he goes all Matt Miller and offers “five ideas that both liberals and conservatives might agree on that also could actually improve economic growth.” Here they are, with my annotation:
1) Eliminate corporate income taxes, especially if you are also going to hit companies with all these energy taxes.
The U.S. has the second highest corporate tax rate in the developed world (after Japan), so yeah, it ought to be lower. Eliminating it strikes me as an invitation for all affluent Americans to reinvent themselves as corporations, though. I also can’t see how, if a decrease in the corporate rate didn’t make it into the tax cut mix in 2001 and 2003, it has any chance of happening now.
2) Get companies out of the business of providing healthcare benefits.
No argument there. Except that there’s got to be some kind of payoff for people in terms of universal care to make it work.
3) Index Social Security benefits to inflation, and extend the retirement age, allowing a big cut in payroll taxes for the middle class.
I think it’s a bit of a stretch to say that liberals and conservatives would agree on this. I more or less agree with it, though, as long as you also introduce some sort of universal retirement savings plan to complement Social Security for those without corporate pensions or 401ks.
4) Create government-funded “innovation prizes” for key technology challenges.
Cool.
5) Give universities incentives to create more science geeks, and offer grad students free-floating fellowships to choose whatever field they see as the best market match for their skills.
Also cool, and very Paul Romer.