Dems and economic politics over economic progress

This is an interesting discussion (Robert Barro: The Folly of Subsidizing Unemployment - WSJ.com) of how Democrats are wont to choose political gain over economic gain. First, Democrats are probably angling for the low tax policies of the Bush administration for political reasons more than economic ones. ("Democrats can't agree over killing or saving the Bush-era tax cuts - The Hill's On The Money). That's old news. BTW, that title should probably be "Democrats can't DECIDE about killing or saving the Bush-era tax cuts."

But second, the conversion of unemployment insurance to a welfare program--even though it has likely hurt Obama's resume on job creation, will still be a useful weapon for claiming that Republicans aren't as compassionate toward Americans.