http://www.ohio.com/editorial/commentary/105010969.html?c=yConstant repetition of anti-government rhetoric in our political echo chamber has dulled Americans into overlooking an important and perhaps surprising fact: We have just lived through one of the more notable successes of government intervention in modern times — the auto and bank rescues that almost surely saved the country from another Great Depression.
The current state of the economy, to be sure, is nothing to celebrate, with unemployment stuck at 9.6 percent. That's why President Obama was right this week to renew his call to invest $50 billion in creating jobs, present and future, by repairing the nation's transportation infrastructure.
But in the gale of anti-Washington sentiment, where any mention of government ''stimulus'' or ''rescue'' draws attack, this infrastructure-spending plan sadly has no chance of success. That means the Federal Reserve will have to use its less-potent tools for stimulating the economy.
What accounts for the public rage toward Washington? It's one thing to denounce government when it fails to achieve its goals. But to ignore government's achievements in times of crisis is willfully stupid. Especially when, as in the auto and bank bailouts, government was coming to the rescue of private companies that had endangered the country.
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