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Does this mean, when politicians at the national level say "we need more fiscal stimulus to rebuild infrastructure," that they're wasting money? Would it be be

Does this mean, when politicians at the national level say "we need more fiscal stimulus to rebuild infrastructure," that they're wasting money? Would it be better if those politicians said "we need higher taxes on cars and trucks to rebuild infrastructure?" I mean, one of the messages we hear repeated ad nauseum from economists and politicians is that this sort of government subsidy is a good thing: it creates jobs and grows GDP. It's a win-win. Now, are we supposed to believe it's some kind of perverse incentive and an unfair subsidy? Which is it?

pkulak 10y ago
> Would it be better if those politicians said "we need higher taxes on cars and trucks to rebuild infrastructure?" I would be better if they did it. But, if they _said_ it they would immediately lose their office. So... It's been known for a very long time in economic circles that the taxes we have are not the best taxes, or even good taxes; they are the taxes that politicians were able to get people to vote for. So, we have a staggeringly-low gas tax and make up for it with income, sales and property taxes.