While one can't disagree with the data, there is furious disagreement over everything else. On one side are those--mostly liberals--who say the economy is suffering from insufficient demand. That is, people and businesses are not buying things, and the only cure is for the government to step in, spend money and create demand.

On the other side, conservatives argue that the problem is not weak demand but obstacles on the supply side. Businesses and people would spend, this argument goes, if they were in an environment that encouraged them to do so. That means lowering taxes and reducing regulations.

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