I have two beefs. Putting on my fuddy-duddy economist hat: 1. Buy American may sound great to the average person, but as industrial policy it is weak. Biden is on firmer ground with the CHIPS act. The objective for progressives is a program to provoke manufacturing investment in the U.S., employment in which we hope will be superior to jobs in the service sector. (According to Dean Baker, that is less likely these days.) Buying American is basically a tax on the public sector, which is not flush as it is.
Speaking of Dean Baker, and of taxes, what’s your view on his suggestion that we should replace corporate taxes with a government-owned non-voting equity position?
It's hard to tax accrued capital gains of private firms. Not impossible, maybe. But difficult, since it would require a government assessment of the gain, much like a real property tax. And rich guys will have the legal firepower to challenge every assessment.
Speaking of Dean Baker, and of taxes, what’s your view on his suggestion that we should replace corporate taxes with a government-owned non-voting equity position?
It's hard to tax accrued capital gains of private firms. Not impossible, maybe. But difficult, since it would require a government assessment of the gain, much like a real property tax. And rich guys will have the legal firepower to challenge every assessment.