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58 IRET Policy Bulletin 1 (1992)

handle is hein.taxfoundation/iretpbul0017 and id is 1 raw text is: October 23, 1992 SNo. 58 BUSH SAYS HE'S LEARNED FROM HIS MISTAKES, CLINTON PROMISES TO REPEAT THEM During this political campaign the one issue that has been of overriding concern to the electorate has been the economy. In spite of this, a statement of guiding principles for economic recovery has not been articulated by either President George Bush or Governor Bill Clinton. What has been sadly lacking is a benchmark that can help the American citizens decide whether any particular policy proposal is a step in the right direction. Instead, what the American people are faced with are a set of piecemeal policy proposals meant to solve one perceived problem or another, with no way of judging whether those changes will enhance the nation's economic well-being overall. This state of affairs is not necessary. It is clear that a system of voluntary exchange based on private property and freedom of choice, i.e., a free market system, will allow an economy to prosper and will enhance the well-being of the population more than any other social arrangement. Indeed, there are very few propositions in the social sciences that are more supportable, either theoretically or empirically, than this one. Furthermore, since our country was founded on a notion of fairness that emphasized individual liberty and responsibility, policies that move the economy toward freer markets also move the society in the direction of a higher moral plane. The economic proposals offered by President Bush and Governor Clinton can and should be judged in this light. Public policies that are most likely to aid the economy in lifting itself to higher growth rates and enhanced job opportunities will be those that enhance the operation of the free market economy. This means that policies should aim toward allowing markets to operate more freely and toward enhancing not encumbering our system of private property rights. This means different things in different areas of public policy. With respect to taxation and the budget, this implies first that the tax code should do as little as possible to distort the price system and therefore impede economic decision making. Public policy should seek to reduce taxes in all areas but especially on saving and capital investment. This is because the current tax system exerts a strong negative bias in these areas. Therefore growth oriented tax policy would seek to reduce all taxes on dividends and capital gains, all business and corporations, and on ordinary savings. Institute for IRET is a non-profit, tax exempt 501(c)3 economic policy research and educational Research organization devoted to informing the public about policies that will promote on the economic growth and efficient operation of the market economy. Economics of 1730 K Street, N.W., Suite 910 * Washington, D.C. 20006 Taxation (202) 463-1400 * Fax (202) 463-6199 e Internet www.iret.org

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