What Wasn’t Discussed

by Stuart Shapiro

So the debates are over and the race is where it was several months ago. The president has between a 60 percent and 7o percent chance of being re-elected. And the debates did include real exchanges on important issues like the nuclearization of Iran, our mounting debt, and growing inequality (sort of).  But I’m somewhat shocked that two issues that may be more important than any of those weren’t discussed.  Here are two questions I wish were asked:

1.  For the past year, Europe has teetered on the brink of economic disaster.   Governor Romney, you’ve invoked Greece several times as a warning to the United States.  But what would each of you do if Greece leaves the Euro zone and precipitates a depression in Europe?

2.  This is one of the warmest years in the past century.  It comes in the midst of the warmest decade in centuries.  Wildfires and droughts are becoming more common and scientific consensus is that carbon emissions are to blame.  If you win this election, what would each of you to do combat (or adapt to) climate change?

These are arguably bigger issues than anything that was discussed.

By: Stuart Shapiro

Stuart is a professor and the Director of the Public Policy
program at the Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers
University. He teaches economics and cost-benefit analysis and studies
regulation in the United States at both the federal and state levels.
Prior to coming to Rutgers, Stuart worked for five years at the Office
of Management and Budget in Washington under Presidents Clinton and
George W. Bush.