Three numbers from Greg Mankiw (September 29, 2007)

Greg Mankiw has posted two interesting numbers and an attack on a third one, all of which are relevant for current political discussions:

• "How the Rich Got Rich". Of the Forbes 400, 74 people inherited their riches and 270 are self-made.
• "Question for Democrats". Each percentage point of new taxes for the top two income brackets yields $6 billion per year for the government. Since the current federal spending on health care and social security is about $400 billion each, the question is: where will the funding come from for any major increase in these programs?
• "How big a problem is lack of health insurance?". Mankiw points out that most of the people not insured in the U.S. either could be, or have so much income that they do not really need it, or are illegal immigrants. The question he asks: what are the real numbers, after you account for these groups?

Believe it or not from these quotes, Mankiw generally favors progressive policies. I appreciate, though, that he is not simply a cheerleader of one party or the other.