Alan Greenspan may call himself a libertarian Republican, but his new bookprovides a major credibility boost for Democrats on economic policy.
The first, and less surprising, blow came in his criticism of the Bush-era spending excesses. Many conservative Republicans have long offered that critique. It helps that the former Fed chairman--who has come to represent the gold standard in sound economic judgment--validates the Democratic critique of Republican rule as fiscally irresponsible. But it isn't a major new departure.
More telling was Greenspan's praise of Bill Clinton's economic record. In the polarized politics we've become accustomed to, the most powerful praise is that which comes from the other side of the political fence. You can already hear the 30-second campaign commercials that begin, "As Alan Greenspan said..."
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