A choice of remedies

摘要

With America in or near recession, the economy has muscled its way to the top of most people's priorities. Yet voters this autumn will not just be deciding which man they trust to manage the economy. They will also vote more broadly on what role they want the government to play in their lives.rnFor decades both Democrats and Republicans have broadly espoused less regulation, freer markets and free trade, though their conviction has waxed and waned with the economic weather. That consensus is now under threat. Average wages have stagnated since 2001 because of high energy prices, rising health-care costs and widening inequality. Many blame free trade or immigration. The credit crisis has further undermined the consensus by exposing serious flaws in America's financial system and precipitating dramatic intervention by the government in the markets (see next article).