^{Wealth & Poverty Review} Scott Powell on the Looming Financial Crisis

In a new article in the Philadelphia Inquirer, CWPM Senior Fellow Scott Powell warns that an economic collapse is closer than most Americans realize. Without serious fiscal reform that checks out-of-control government spending and encourages private-sector growth, Powell foresees another financial crisis–one that would be considerably more disastrous than that of 2008.

Sadly, things are worse today than they were a year ago, when the United States lost its S&P AAA rating. The national debt has grown nearly 11 percent, while the economy has grown only 2 percent. And, over the last four years of various government-spending programs, debt has grown 60 percent, while GDP has grown only 7.7 percent. So much for the benefits of Keynesian stimulus. Washington’s policies have left the country without shock absorbers or an effective insurance policy to counter another crisis.

Despite these foreboding figures, Powell finishes on a more hopeful note, seeing in the upcoming presidential election an opportunity to instate new leadership, vision, and policies. His article can be read here.