How big is the government really?
by Benjamin on February 14, 2010
I am confused. Since seeing OECD statistics to the effect that the US government represented more than 40% of GDP in 2009 (available on the linked OECD site under USA> National Accounts>…) I have also checked BEA figures and UN data which both suggest it’s around 20% in terms of expenditure as a component of GDP. I don’t really know what’s going on, but I’m pretty sure something is amiss in this empirical debate. Perhaps there’s a mistake in translating quarterly and annual figures or maybe they’re just measuring different things. Either way, it seems rather odd.
This is particularly important to get right with a view to the rising interest in the ‘Tea Parties’ which are seen as a sign that the conservative movement is on the rise. I just wonder if a new more extreme conservatism won’t simply push republican candidates to be more radical, alienating central voters and losing republican votes in the aggregate. It’s the old 2-party vs 3-party selection problem, and we know voter preferences are not perfect when you introduce a third option into a previous two-horse race.
Tags: BEA, Government, OECD, Politics, statistics, tea-party, UN, voting
