Steven Greenhut Says Job Growth Is Good News, Tax Hikes Are Bad News

Most debates about tax policy suggest a
widespread understanding of Winston Churchill’s quip that “for a
nation to try to tax itself into prosperity is like a man standing
in a bucket and trying to lift himself up by the handle.” Even the
advocates for tax increases usually claim such hikes are needed to
pay for the level of government spending that they propose or that
higher taxes promote income equality, but they rarely doubt that
increasing the burden on job creators leads to fewer created jobs.
But following some welcome news showing a healthier, recovering
California economy, some economists and pundits are making the case
that Churchill has been debunked. They aren’t just saying that
recent tax increases haven’t been that bad for growth — but that
the taxes may sometimes be the cause of it. Steven Greenhut says
that even if it’s true (and it’s not), it’s not a particularly
moral argument.

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