Deficit addiction - a bipartisan norm in the US

Washington

HISTORY is what we make of it - and sometimes we make a real hash. I take as my text for the sermon that follows an op-ed essay in The New York Times this week by Times' columnist David Leonhardt. The headline tells it all: "Democrats, the Real Fiscal Conservatives." Are you kidding?

It is certainly true, as Mr Leonhardt argues, that the Republicans have lost any legitimate claim to be "fiscal conservatives". But the notion that Democrats have replaced them is laughable. The reality is that both Republicans and Democrats are deficit addicts. Democrats have played a central role in this transformation.

Before I explain why, let me admit that I write this column reluctantly. As a rule, I don't comment on or criticise other columnists. To do so would result in too much "inside baseball" and would personali…