The Fed Isn’t Powerless

– March 10, 2023

“Responsible students of monetary policy must vigorously resist the ‘powerless Fed’ myth. All it does is absolve central bankers of responsibility for what, on the basis of good theory and mounting evidence, is primarily their fault to begin with.” ~ Alexander William Salter

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Does Government Spending Lead to Inflation?

– December 27, 2022

“The key point is that it is the central bank’s willingness to help finance government spending, not the spending itself, that drives inflation. In short: inflation remains a monetary phenomenon.” ~ Bryan Cutsinger

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Does the Fed Control Interest Rates?

– December 26, 2022

“The Fed is a failed institution in need of major reforms. But we won’t make the right changes if we don’t understand the basic relationship between central banks and capital markets.” ~ Alexander William Salter

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Supply, Demand, and Inflation: The Big Picture

– December 17, 2022

“Where did all this inflation come from? Supply-side issues are a problem, but in terms of magnitudes, it just doesn’t make sense to call them the chief contributor.” ~ Alexander William Salter

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The Federal Reserve’s Expanding Mandate (Video)

– December 14, 2022

“In this video, Kate Wand sat down with AIER Senior Research Faculty Thomas Hogan to discuss the Federal Reserve’s expanding objectives and how they affect its ability to conduct monetary policy.” ~ AIER

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CBDC in the USA: Not Now, Not Ever

– December 13, 2022

“The fact that the New York Fed, in conjunction with a handful of private banks, has implemented a ‘pilot’ program with digital tokens is worrying enough. Under no circumstances should we allow the government to roll out a CBDC.” ~ Alexander William Salter

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CBDCs: What Can We Learn From Dollarized Countries?

– November 13, 2022

“How much more could FDR have done had he had a CBDC? The risk of a CBDC goes beyond the serious issue of financial privacy.” ~ Nicolás Cachanosky

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Helping Banks Help Themselves: Extended Shareholder Liability

– October 27, 2022

“The best way to reduce systemic risk is to give the risktakers the incentive to economize on risk. An extended liability regime for banking is a simple and elegant way to improve incentives. We should seriously consider it.” ~ Alexander William Salter

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Inflated Hopes and Burst Bubbles

– October 18, 2022

“The Fed’s chief task is to restore its lost credibility. In retrospect, the switch to average inflation targeting was a mistake. It gave the Fed plausible deniability for noisier, less predictable policy.” ~ Alexander William Salter

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A Very British Fiasco

– October 12, 2022

“These things happen, but they happen a lot to UK financial regulators, and Governor Bailey himself has presided over a good number of regulatory fiascos. In short, the crisis confirms that UK financial regulation is not fit for purpose.” ~ Kevin Dowd

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The CBDC Tradeoff

– October 9, 2022

“Rather than crowding out the private sector with a CBDC, the government should let a thousand payment mechanisms bloom.” ~ William J. Luther

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Will A Digital Dollar Offer Financial Privacy?

– October 7, 2022

“At some point, a CBDC that fails to provide a high degree of financial privacy will be used to monitor and censor the transactions of one’s political enemies. It is foolish to think otherwise.” ~ William J. Luther

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