Krugman vs Krugman – Take 2

posted by Nima

August 27, 2010 · Posted in General Economics

Alright, time for some more wisdom:

November 2008 – Krugman in “Stimulus Math – Wonkish”:

When I put all this together, I conclude that the stimulus package should be at least 4% of GDP, or $600 billion.

That’s twice what the unreliable rumor says. So if there’s any truth to the rumor, my advice to the powers that be (or more accurately will be in a couple of months) is to think hard – you really, really don’t want to lowball this.

July 2010 – Krugman in How Did We Know the Stimulus Was too Small:

Those of us who say that the stimulus was too small are often accused of after-the-fact rationalization: you said this would work, but now that it hasn’t, you’re just saying it wasn’t big enough. The quick answer to that accusation is that people like me said that the stimulus was too small in advance.
(…)
To close a gap of more than $2 trillion — possibly a lot more, if the budget office projections turn out to be too optimistic — Mr. Obama offers a $775 billion plan. And that’s not enough.

This stuff is just too hysterical for words …