Topic: Fiscal Policy

Sovereign Bonds Since The Battle of Waterloo

– March 12, 2019

The history of sovereign debt appears to be a history of default, repudiation, and limited debt enforcement. Why, then, do investors keep going back?

Fiscal Policy

Debts and Deficits are Out of Control

– February 5, 2019

Government spending and borrowing has been and will continue to be seriously out of control, with dire longer-run consequences if not addressed, while addressing it would be far less of a fiscal disaster than it will be if the country is left to follow its current course.

Fiscal Policy

AOC is Calling For Wars She Can’t Win

– January 25, 2019

Strong centralized nation-states are good at marshaling resources to defeat other nations in wars. But how have more recent “wars” we’ve fought against drugs, poverty, and terrorism turned out? Society has gone through staggering changes since 1941, and so have the problems we face. The left should think long and hard about these changes before planning its next round of wars.

Fiscal Policy

How About Improper Payments in the Military?

– January 25, 2019

Imagine if a company behaved this way, and refused to get audited for 26 years straight and then failed its audit. How long do you think its investors would stick around?

Fiscal Policy

How Can Governments Borrow at Such Low Rates?

– January 24, 2019

Those who cite low interest rates on government debt miss the point. It is not the price of government borrowing that matters. Rather, it is the opportunity cost of government borrowing to society.

Fiscal Policy

How $137 Billion Strangely Disappears

– January 22, 2019

That number sums all the improper payments by what the government calls high-priority programs. If it makes your head spin, it should.

Fiscal Policy, International, Monetary Policy

Why Is Country Risk Rising in Argentina?

– January 7, 2019

Argentina has secured an IMF agreement and announced aggressive policies to reduce its fiscal deficit and inflation rate. But that might not be enough to comfort its creditors.

Fiscal Policy

How Modern Monetary Theory Could Become the Left’s Worst Nightmare

– January 6, 2019

If those on the left who subscribe to MMT believe political history will end once they finally implement their enlightened government programs, they are guilty not just of bad economics but of astounding political naivete.