Books on liberal economists?

[angryfirelord]

Hello fellow DU members! (if you don't mind a little story, read onward)

When I first entered into politics (which wasn't very long ago), I initially entered as a Republican. I supported Ron Paul in the primaries and his ideologies of a smaller government with more economic freedom. I even bought his book and explained his political views to others. However, as the GOP rallied behind McCain instead, I decided to trek down the Libertarian path.

Today, I'm starting to have some problems with that. While I still think things like the Fed needs to be abolished, there are some things that many conservative economists fail to look over. Such as, if the government allows for more upfront spending on needs like health care, will it help or hurt the economy? If government is involved in mandating legislation that protects consumers (such as the FDA), will this be better than allowing the free market to handle it alone? If the government exacts higher tariffs, will it keep jobs in our country or will it hurt the consumer? I don't expect anyone to answer those, just using them as an example. :)

With that in mind, I would like to diversity my knowledge. Obviously, I've only studied the free market side of things (such as David Friedman) but are there any good books that deal with liberal economics?

Thanks!

[Mojambo]

1. There are so many good ones, but Jared Bernstein's "All Together Now" is quite good.

I also might recommend a periodical by the name of Dollars and Sense

http://www.dollarsandsense.org/

[angryfirelord]

2. Thanks!

Very interesting info, especially on the Republican's accusation of the CRA creating the bailout mess. Thanks again! :)