Email to Daniel Gross

Email sent to Daniel Gross, a business and finance columnist at slate.com in response to this column:

Mr. Gross,

In your most recent column you state:

Once again, the past 16 years provide a great controlled experiment: eight years of a Democratic regime that was comparatively pro-labor, higher tax, pro-regulation, and anti-free trade, followed by eight years of a Republican regime that was comparatively anti-labor, decidedly low tax and anti-regulation, and pro-free trade. Pop quiz: For the members of the Chamber of Commerce, and for corporate America at large, which eight years were better?

You describe a Clinton regime that was comparatively anti-free trade, but how does that square with the ratification of NAFTA and the Uruguay GATT round under his watch? Indeed, this would make the host of bilaterals and CAFTA under Bush's watch seem like small potatoes in comparison.

You describe the 8 years of Clinton as more pro-regulation, but under whose watch was Sarbanes-Oxley passed? And under whose watch was Glass-Steagall repealed? Under whose watch was the Telecom Reform Act passed that eliminated major ownership restrictions for radio and television groups? (hint: not Bush)

Which president signed a bigger increase in the minimum wage?

I'm not sure your narrative works as neatly as you think it does.

Regards,

Colin

Gross is also author of Pop!: Why Bubbles are Great for the Economy. Yeah, I'm sure the Federal Reserve is doing backflips over the housing bubble...

In any case, despite sending this email multiple times to the provided email address -- moneybox@slate.com -- it keeps getting bounced back to me. Hmmm.