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Economist John Maynard Keynes, often described as the man who saved capitalism during the Great Depression, may have been the right man at the right time.

Economist Paul Krugman, who describes Keynes as his “economic idol,” may also be the right man at the right time. But supporters of Barack Obama certainly hope not.

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Krugman – Nobel laureate, Princeton professor and New York Times columnist, is following in his hero’s footsteps by becoming the most prominent critic of government recovery strategies during a severe economic crisis.

Paul Krugman

Democrats who reveled in Krugman’s constant criticism of the Bush White House are now squirming under his attack on Obama’s economic policies. While Krugman agrees with Obama’s injecting massive amounts of capital into the system to help jumpstart the economy, he believes the administration is being timid and spending too little.

The biggest fear among Obama backers is that history could be repeating itself. Here’s a passage from Liaquat Ahamed’s new book, Lords of Finance:

“During every act of the drama so painfully being played out, he refused to keep quiet, insisting on at least one monologue even if it was from offstage. … He was not a decision maker. In those years, he was simply an independent observer, a commentator. But at every twist and turn of the plot, there he was holding forth from the wings, with his irreverent and playful wit, his luminous and constantly questioning intellect, and above his remarkable ability to be right.”

Ahamed is describing Keynes’ role during the 1930s. Krugman has taken on similar prominence in the current crisis.

This week’s edition of Newsweek features him on its cover, with the headline, “Obama is wrong.”

The magazine describes Krugman as the president’s “loyal opposition,” cementing his rank as Obama’s most influential naysayer. Yet administration officials recognize that Krugman is too big to criticize.

“The Obama White House is careful not to provoke the wrath of Krugman any more than necessary,” writes Newsweek’s Evan Thomas. “Treasury officials go out of their way to praise him by name (while also decrying the bank-rescue prescriptions of him and his ilk as “deeply impractical”).”

White House bulldog Rahm Emanuel did take a sidelong swipe last month, saying that critics such as Krugman had never dealt with the legislative process. “How many bills has he passed?” Emanuel asked.

Yet Krugman has been disturbingly prescient. His book, The Return of Depression Economics, which focused primarily on the crisis in Asia, was published in 2000. It has been reissued, with updates pointing up the similarities to the current crisis.

“I believe not only that we’re living in a new era of depression economics,” he writes, “but also that John Maynard Keynes – the economist who made sense of the Great Depression – is now more relevant than ever.”

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• NY Times gig is a sideline for Nobel-winning Paul Krugman – October 14, 2008
• Muckety mover – Bernanke steps into spotlight – March 16, 2009
• Christina Romer may not be Harvard material, but she suits Obama – November 26, 2008
• Gene B. Sperling may return to familiar turf – January 14, 2009
• Rahm’s older brother, Zeke, plays key role in health-care reform – March 5, 2009
• Rahm Emanuel agrees to be chief of staff – November 5, 2008
• Scott McClellan comes from ‘tell-all’ tradition – May 28, 2008
• NY Fed prospect Kevin Warsh already has wealthy connections – January 9, 2009
• The Way the World Works, according to Ross Perot – June 17, 2008
• Obama to pick Timothy Geithner as Treasury secretary – November 21, 2008