Political Futures

Columnist David Harsanyi: “When was the last time a politician won an election with a plan that spent less and cut more? When was the last time a majority of Americans supported reforms that would deal with deficits in any meaningful way? Broadly speaking, voters want to tackle the debt problem. But they don’t like any of the specifics. Finally, supposedly 6 in 10 Americans believe that the federal government has too much power – 1 percentage point from the highest level in September 2010. According to Gallup, at least half of Americans since 2005 have said the government has too much power. Where is the proof that a majority of Americans want less government? Americans have elected two presidents who have vastly expanded the scope of government, and both of them won re-election rather comfortably. It’s likelier that voters view government as having too much power when government is being run by someone else. And that’s our biggest problem.”