Paul Krugman: New Policy Ideas Are Overrated.

Paul Krugman: We don't have to reinvent the wheel. We just need to get rolling.

Paul Krugman notices that the GOP has a reform movement. I read the same article he did, but his take is directly to a larger point:

But then, the whole notion that new ideas are what politics is about is greatly overrated. Governing isn’t like selling smartphones; the underlying shape of the problems you have to confront changes quite slowly, and the basics of policy debate are quite stable.

In particular, the central policy debate in US politics hasn’t changed in decades, nor should it. Liberals want a strong social safety net, financed with relatively high taxes, especially on high incomes. Conservatives want much less of a safety net, and much lower taxes on the affluent.

When you check with the American people, which pollsters do constantly, you find that they're almost always largely in favor of liberal policies. That the Republican Party recycles old, worn-out policies -- and in the case of gun control, outright dangerous -- shouldn't be a mystery to anyone.

The point is the Democratic Party shouldn't be afraid to run loudly and openly on its usual policy prescriptions. They're popular, and, in the long run, winners.