Harvard economist Robert Barro being interviewed on the stimulus bill by the Atlantic:
Barro: This is probably the worst bill that has been put forward since the 1930s. I don't know what to say. I mean it's wasting a tremendous amount of money. It has some simplistic theory that I don't think will work, so I don't think the expenditure stuff is going to have the intended effect. I don't think it will expand the economy. And the tax cutting isn't really geared toward incentives. It's not really geared to lowering tax rates; it's more along the lines of throwing money at people. On both sides I think it's garbage. So in terms of balance between the two it doesn't really matter that much.
Atlantic: Well, presumably Larry Summers is not an idiot.
Barro: [laughs] That is another conversation. I have known him for 25 years, and I have opinions about that.
Atlantic: Well, presumably Christina Romer is not an idiot if you're . . .
Barro: They've brought in some reasonable people in terms of economic advisers. I don't know what impact they're having, and I suppose they have different views on Keynesian macroeconomics than I have. But I'm giving you my opinion about it.
