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Anyway, it was always obvious to anyone who really paid attention that people like Paul Ryan were fiscal hypocrites, who would suddenly lose all interest in deficits as soon as a Republican occupied the White House. And thats what they did.

As I said, the budget deficit has exploded past $1 trillion under Trump, up from less than $600 billion in Obamas last year. Most of that rise can be attributed to Trumps policies, mainly a tax cut rammed through Congress using exactly the hyperpartisan tactics Obama balked at in 2009.

In a way, the surprising thing about Trumps deficitpalooza is that it hasnt boosted the economy even more, a shortfall that can be attributed to bad design. After all, the corporate tax cuts that were the biggest driver of rising deficits did nothing to increase business investment, which has actually declined over the past year.

And while the Obama stimulus included significant investments in the future, helping in particular to jump-start revolutionary progress in green energy, Trump has never delivered a penny on his promise to rebuild Americas infrastructure.

Still, Trumps deficits have given the economy and Trumps political fortunes a lift in the short term. And that fact should bother you, a lot.

Put it this way: Republicans used the pretense that they cared about fiscal responsibility to engage in de facto economic sabotage as long as a Democrat was in the White House. Then they abandoned the pretense and opened up the spending taps as soon as one of their own was in power. And far from paying a price for their duplicity, they are being politically rewarded.

The implications for party strategy are stark: Maximum cynicism is the best policy. Obstruct, disrupt, and hurt the economy as much as you can, deploying whatever hypocritical excuses you think the media will buy, when the other party holds the presidency. Then abandon all concerns for the future and buy votes once youre back in control.

For whatever reason, Democrats havent been willing or able to behave that cynically. Republicans, however, have. And if Trump is re-elected, that asymmetric cynicism will be the main reason.

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The Triumph of Fiscal Hypocrisy - The New York Times