Values Based Progressive Patriotic Capitalism

Among the reasons the Albanese government won the most recent election, apart from the abject policy and campaigning incompetence of the Coalitions, is that Albanese and his team were, in my humble opinion, underestimated.

Not underestimated in their ability execute. But underestimated in their desire to transform Australia into centrally planned utopia where everyone is equal. Equally poor.

Remember this - values based capital. This was Jim Chalmers’ vision of managing the economy through a coalition of big government, big business and big labour. The vision that has delivered the highest declines in productivity and disposable incomes in the developed world. Oh and yet another per-capita recession while having government take the highest share of the economy outside Covid.

By now - progressive patriotism. This is Anthony Albanese’s new catch phrase. What does it mean? In specifics, unclear. In strategics, a much bigger role for government.

Meanwhile, the Coalition is uncertain about whether to support a big new tax on super to finance state based profligacy. The big new tax increase that Jim Chalmers calls tax reform.

On the Sunday past, Shadow Finance Minister James Patterson was on Insiders. When pressed on how a Coalition government would finance increased defence spending - and specifically through higher taxes or government cuts - Patterson unfortunatey flubbed it. Completely flubbed it.

Rather than reject the premise of the question, Patterson just waffled around it.

What he should have said was that it is possible to increase government revenues by cutting taxes. This called the Laffer Curve effect and was categorically demonstrated by the administration of President Ronald Reagan when he cut taxes yet tax revenues boomed.

How? Because it stimulated economic growth.

But it was not just tax cuts. It was a massive deregulatory effort also.

It is possible to increase tax higher revenues but reduce government as a proportion of the economy. Through economic growth.

But such simple concepts are no longer understood in Canberra. It's all Bolivarianism and Peronism from here. With the associated economic and social rot.

Values Based Progressive Patriotic Capitalism that is.

Forget about leaving to your children better than you had. Worry about having yourself better tomorrow than you had yesterday. More taxes. More inflation. More government.