The Story:
The Republican candidate for Governor of Virginia, Glenn Youngkin, said recently that his chief economic advisor in his campaign is Stephen Moore, whom he glowingly called “the best senior economic adviser on the planet.”
Background:
Stephen Moore is a Franklin’s-kite of an economic adviser, and in naming him so glowingly, Youngkin has in fact drawn lightning.
Moore has a Masters in Economics from George Mason University, and is best known for his constant advocacy of tax cuts and spending reductions.
Former President Donald Trump nominated Moore for a seat on the Federal Reserve in March 2019. Under intense criticism, Moore eventually withdrew his name.
The Thing to Know:
The reaction to the re-appearance of Moore in the context of the Youngkin campaign was pithily expressed by Jonathan Chiat, writing in New York Magazine: “Stephen Moore is not the best economic adviser on the planet, or for that matter, the country, the state, or any area that contains Steve Moore and any other human being, with the arguable exception of Lawrence Kudlow.”
