Two IMF papers that appeared in July 2011 and July 2012 effectively brought Alesina's hour to a close. … Nicoletta Battini et al.'s "Successful Austerity in the United States, Europe and Japan"—an examination of the big cases that matter—pretty much pulls any remaining theoretical and empirical supports out from under the expansionary austerity case. … They argue, inter alia, that consolidating in a downturn is twice as risky as doing it in an upturn; that smooth and gradual consolidations always work better than strong and abrupt ones; that frontloaded contractions are more contractionary and worsen the debt-to-GDP load, and that cutting taxes is less contractionary than cutting transfers, especially when it's done gradually.

Mark Blyth, Austerity, loc. 582