We Don't Need No Education

nytimes.com — Hope springs eternal. For a few hours I was ready to applaud Mitt Romney for speaking honestly about what his calls for smaller government actually mean. Never mind. Soon the candidate was being his normal self. In the remarks Mr. Romney later tried to deny, he derided President Obama: “He says we need more firemen, more policemen, more teachers.” You can see why I was ready to give points for honesty. For once, he actually admitted what he and his allies mean when they talk about shrinking government. A majority of government workers are employed providing either education or public protection. So would getting rid of teachers, police officers, and firefighters help the American people? But the more relevant question for the moment is whether the public job cuts Mr. Romney applauds are good or bad for the economy. And we now have a lot of evidence bearing on that question.

more »