In the ongoing polarized debates about the size and scope of government, many American politicians and talking heads are turning to European examples to make their case.
When discussions of increased government spending arise, some conservatives screech “We are turning into profligate overspenders like those irresponsible Greeks!”
When discussions of cutting government spending arise, some liberals lecture “We are turning into heartless penny pinchers like those cruel Brits!”
OECD data on fiscal benefits and public indebtedness (link here) tell a different story.
At the time the 2010 financial crisis began in Greece, its “profligate” government’s spending as a share of GDP was 49.5 percent.
Today, under its “heartless” austerity drive, UK government spending as a share of GDP is….48.8 percent.
The current figure for the U.S. government is 40.4 percent. The putatively profligate Greeks are a lot more like the supposedly austere Brits than either of them is like us.
[Cross-posted at The Reality-Based Community]
