Bernie Sanders calls for socialism in the US and envisions a larger, more cosmopolitan Denmark. Right-wing pundits (say, Bret Stephens) see another Venezuela. Who’s right? Or, to be more precise, how do the two supposedly analogous countries differ, and which of the two more closely resembles the US?
Denmark obviously had a vastly more productive and diversified economy even before Venezuela began its descent into darkness. Venezuela relies almost totally on a nationalized oil company for revenue, which is a recipe for stagnation and corruption. Denmark has an independent central bank. I doubt Venezuela does. Denmark budgets to pay its bills. Venezuela decided to print money to pay its bills years ago, with predictable results.
The US obviously more closely resembles Denmark in every respect. The one very slight concern one would have is if, somehow, we elected a president who believed in MMT, and she succeeded in one way or another in imposing that opinion on the Fed. It’s a major stretch, but given the tone of the discussion among some Democrats today, it’s not 100 percent beyond the realm of possibility.