Statistics

Here are two headlines:
Americans want more government spending

Most Americans Not Willing To Pay Higher Taxes For Public Employees, Entitlement Programs

I think the mistake Michael Lind makes is that he references a Gallup poll survey question that says that 60 percent of Americans favor "additional government spending to create jobs and stimulate the economy". The question seems to be based on the premise that government spending does in fact create jobs without any harmful side effects. But few people seem to believe that: 29% Say Stimulus Plan Helped the Economy, 43% Say It Hurt