On the Absurdity of the Golden Ratio

The House Tea Party GOP are insisting on a split between spending cuts and tax changes of 85% - 15%.  That's 85% from cuts and 15% from non-margin-changing closure of loopholes.  Where, you might ask did they get this magic ratio?  Was there a team of economists pouring over data for weeks on end to arrive at the optimal plan?  Funny...  This is the Tea Party GOP we're talking about here.  Research is for the weak.  We rely on common sense.  You know, common sense that the sun revolves around a flat earth where people rode dinosaurs to work 5,000 years ago.

No, don't be confused by facts Tea Party GOP members, this supposed magic ratio comes from one paper, not peer reviewed mind you, but a working paper "published" by the discredited economists at The American Enterprise Institute (no agenda there!).  The "study" was based on data that the IMF rejected for "[failing] to identify consolidations when governments took substantial actions to reduce the deficit, but the actions were associated with severe economic downturns”.  So the entire Tea Party GOP plan is built on a lie.  Who's surprised?  Anyone?  Anyone?  Bueller?  Bueller?

But wait, it gets better (you knew it would, didn't you!).  If you look at the historical data for tax increases versus spending cuts, Tea Party GOP Presidents presided over far larger tax increase to spending cut plans than did Democrats.

From Ezra Klein and The WaPo

It's an amazing fantasy world we're all being forced to live in, isn't it?  Just amazing.

(Updated with AEI funding link from Dave, Thanks Dave!)