Austerity Economics Is Walking US Prosperity Off a Cliff

Study calls continued spending cuts a 'misguided attempt to solve a short-term debt crisis that simply does not exist'

- Jon Queally, staff writer

The 'economics of austerity'—which includes the continued Republican argument that government spending is a drain on both employment figures and economic growth and must be constantly curtailed—is killing the prospect of improved U.S. prosperity.

That's the finding of a new study by the Center for American Progress based on new figures released by the Congressional Budget Office.

According to Harry Stein and Adam Hersh, economists at CAP and the authors of the study, members of Congress in both parties have allowed for the economy to be "severely damaged" over the last several years by passing "deep spending cuts in a misguided attempt to solve a short-term debt crisis that simply does not exist."