The far-right's latest argument is that recovery spending failed in Japan during the 1990s. Of course this falls into the same category as the myth about the New Deal "failing" in 1937.
Senator Ensign (R-NV) on Meet the Press today:
Remember, Japan during the 1990s -- uh, they acted and they continued to act and they had six different stimulus bills, none of which brought their economy out of the series recession that it was in.
Ensign, believe it or not, sits on the Senate Finance Committee. And he's repeating talk points from Ann Coulter. Smart!
This is another glaring example of far-right disingenuousness and, well, lying. In both cases, the economies of the United States (1930s) and Japan (1990s) were recovering and growing due to stimulus spending until both governments began to focus more on deficit reduction and therefore less spending. And, consequently, both economies stumbled. More details from Krugman here.
Step away from the economy, Republicans.