Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew’s trip to Europe demonstrates that this might be useful, given the apparent role-reversal between the US and the EU on matters related to economics.

Lew spent his time there lecturing his European counterparts on the “need” for further government stimulus, further government spending, the irrelevance of national debt, especially concerning the southern European nations—those who are bankrupt in all but name and needing…bailouts.

It was those European counterparts, though, who were holding out for spending and borrowing (and taxing) discipline on the part of those bankrupt nations.  European Council President Herman Van Rompuy had this to say:

The European economies face a high level of debt, deep structural medium-term challenges and short-term economic headwinds that we need to confront.  There is no room for complacency.

I’ve long decried the EU’s methods in addressing its problem, but they’re learning the need for fiscal discipline.  It would be good if the other side of the Atlantic followed that example.