James M. Buchanan, 93, who won the 1986 Nobel Prize for applying the principles of economic self-interest to understand why politicians do what they do, died Wednesday in Blacksburg, Va. No cause of death was given.
Mr. Buchanan, a professor emeritus at George Mason University, was a pioneer in the field known as public-choice theory, which views government decisions through the personal interests of the bureaucrats and elected leaders who want to advance in their careers and win campaigns.
He summarized public choice as "politics without romance" and said it helps explain why established bureaucracies "tend to grow apparently without limit," why pork-barrel politics endure, and why the tax system is defined by "the increasing number of special credits, exemptions and loopholes."
