Economists call Republican spending 'disgraceful'

http://www.wpherald.com/storyview.php?StoryID=20051208-105151-4423r

Economists call Republican spending 'disgraceful'
The Washington Times

SAN FRANCISCO -- Economist Milton Friedman, a strong supporter of President Bush's tax cuts, says the past four years of Republican spending increases are "disgraceful" and a betrayal of the party's principles.

"I'm disgusted by it," the winner of the 1976 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences told The Washington Times recently.


"For the first time in many years, the Republicans have control of Congress. But once in power, the spending limits were off and it's disgraceful because they went against their principles."

...

The sharp increase in spending has alarmed Mr. Bush's conservative supporters, including many of his outside advisers at the Hoover Institution, where Mr. Friedman is a senior fellow. Some worry that the Republican Congress has lost focus and seems incapable of passing the rest of the president's agenda.