Romney's (and Obama's!) Limited Understanding of Dependency

The Washington Examiner's Tim Carney dings Mitt Romney for parroting "the mistaken liberal view that the growth of government mostly redistributes wealth downward."

Carney, a fierce foe of crony capitalism, notes that most of the dough flows into the pockets of the already-rich:

Romney was correct that a portion of America backs President Obama because they "are dependent upon government" and "believe that they are entitled." We even know these dependents' names: Duke Energy CEO Jim Rogers, General Electric boss Jeff Immelt, Pfizer lobbying chief Sally Sussman, Solyndra investor George Kaiser and millionaire lobbyist Tony Podesta, to list a few….

When government controls more money, those with the best lobbyists pocket most of it. The five largest banks hold a share of U.S. assets 30 percent larger today than in 2006. Also, as Obama has expanded export subsidies, 75 percent of the Export-Import Bank's loan-guarantee dollars in the past three years have subsidized Boeing sales.

Read the whole thing for a spirited attack on the idea that not paying taxes (Romney's definition of irresponsibility) is the same thing as feeling "entitled" to government support.

In 2010, Reason TV interviewed Carney (no relation to Jay!) about his book Obamanomics: How Barack Obama is Bankrupting You and Enriching His Wall Street Friends, Corporate Lobbyists, and Union Bosses. Take a look: