Tim Pawlenty’s dubious economic assertions

The Fact Checker
By Glenn Kessler
WashPost

“Cutting just 1 percent of overall federal spending for six consecutive years would balance the federal budget by 2017.” — Former Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty (R), June 7, 2011

Tim Pawlenty delivered on Tuesday what was billed a major economic speech, in an apparent effort to burnish his free-market credentials in the race for the GOP presidential nomination.

Speaking at the University of Chicago, the former Minnesota governor called for huge cuts in taxes — no income taxes at all for couples making less than $100,000 and no capital gains, dividend or estate taxes. At the same time, he called for cuts in government spending and a goal of achieving 5 percent growth in the gross domestic product — without providing many specifics of his policies to achieve this objective.

We will leave to others whether this is good economic policy, but we are interested in making sure the numbers add up or his facts are accurate. On that score, it is a less-than-stellar performance.

Let’s look at Pawlenty’s claims in the order he made them.

(More here.)