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Public Opinion and the Balanced Budget

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  • Blinder, Alan S
  • Holtz-Eakin, Douglas

Abstract

While most Americans have long favored a balanced federal budget , not all do. This paper uses cross-sectional differences among respondents to two public opinion polls to try to discriminate among competing hypotheses about why Americans want the budget balanced. Logit models are fit to data from two different public opinion polls : a Gallup poll and a CBS/New York Times poll conducted , respectively, in March and April of 1980, a time when the proposed balanced budget amendment to the Constitution was very much in the news. In each case , a large majority favored a balanced budget requirement. However, they favor it for a smorgasbord of reasons and at unclear price. It appears that political affiliation, ideology and personal circumstances are far less important determinants of the choice than economic rationales.
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  • Blinder, Alan S & Holtz-Eakin, Douglas, 1984. "Public Opinion and the Balanced Budget," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 74(2), pages 144-149, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:aea:aecrev:v:74:y:1984:i:2:p:144-49
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    1. Douglas A. Hibbs, Jr., 1982. "Public Concern about Inflation and Unemployment in the United States: Trends, Correlates, and Political Implications," NBER Chapters, in: Inflation: Causes and Effects, pages 211-232, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
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    Cited by:

    1. Tavares, Jose, 2004. "Does right or left matter? Cabinets, credibility and fiscal adjustments," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 88(12), pages 2447-2468, December.
    2. Bernd Hayo & Florian Neumeier, 2017. "Public Attitudes toward Fiscal Consolidation: Evidence from a Representative German Population Survey," Kyklos, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 70(1), pages 42-69, February.
    3. Blesse Sebastian & Berger Melissa & Heinemann Friedrich & Janeba Eckhard, 2017. "Föderalismuspräferenzen in der deutschen Bevölkerung," Perspektiven der Wirtschaftspolitik, De Gruyter, vol. 18(2), pages 145-158, June.
    4. Bernd Hayo & Florian Neumeier, 2016. "Political Leaders' Socioeconomic Background and Public Budget Deficits: Evidence from OECD Countries," Economics and Politics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(1), pages 55-78, March.
    5. Dirk Niepelt, 2004. "Tax Smoothing versus Tax Shifting," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 7(1), pages 27-51, January.
    6. Niepelt, Dirk, 2007. "Starving the beast? Intra-generational conflict and balanced budget rules," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 51(1), pages 145-159, January.
    7. repec:onb:oenbwp:y::i:167:b:1 is not listed on IDEAS
    8. Hayo Bernd & Neumeier Florian, 2019. "Public Preferences for Government Spending Priorities: Survey Evidence from Germany," German Economic Review, De Gruyter, vol. 20(4), pages 1-37, December.
    9. Barnes, Lucy & Hicks, Timothy, 2018. "All Keynesian Now? Public Support for Countercyclical Government Borrowing," SocArXiv pvdeu, Center for Open Science.
    10. Alan S. Blinder, 2013. "The Macroeconomic Policy Paradox," The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, , vol. 650(1), pages 26-46, November.
    11. Hayo, Bernd & Neumeier, Florian, 2014. "Political leaders' socioeconomic background and fiscal performance in Germany," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 34(C), pages 184-205.
    12. Walstad, William B. & Rebeck, Ken, 2002. "Assessing the economic knowledge and economic opinions of adults," The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 42(5), pages 921-935.
    13. Bernd Hayo & Florian Neumeier, 2016. "The debt brake in the eyes of the German population," International Economics and Economic Policy, Springer, vol. 13(1), pages 139-159, January.
    14. Willem Thorbecke, 1992. "Social Security Investment Policy And Capital Formation," Contemporary Economic Policy, Western Economic Association International, vol. 10(3), pages 26-38, July.
    15. Goes, Iasmin & Kaplan, Stephen B., 2024. "Crude credit: The political economy of natural resource booms and sovereign debt management," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 180(C).

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