GUEST COMMENTARY: Higher taxes, greater government spending undermine economic growth

With stimulus spending as one of the most contentious issues in a very contentious political year, politicians of all stripes have argued about whether government spending boosts or hinders economic growth. It is beyond debate, however, that the spending will have to be paid for by taxpayers either now or in the future. Those taxes cause the economy to grow slower, according to a new study released by the Show-Me Institute, “Taxes and Economic Growth: A Review of the Evidence.” Written by Mark Skidmore and Nicole Bradshaw — both professors at Michigan State University’s Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics — the study shows that stimulus spending may not prove to be very stimulating because only spending on highly demanded government services appears to boost economic growth.