Topic: Fiscal Policy

Thinking Harder about “Special” Benefits

“To the extent we believe in giving government assistance to those with incomes, we should trust them to love themselves and their families more than the government does and give them that aid in cash.” ~Gary Galles

A Macroeconomic Agenda for Freedom Conservatives

“It’s time to hit the brakes on modern monetary theory, functional finance, and anything else that justifies using the federal budget as an instrument of social control.” ~ Alexander W. Salter

US Credit Rating Downgraded, Again

“The reduction of the US credit rating is overdue in light of the long and enthusiastic abandonment of fiscal soundness in Washington DC, recently abetted by monetary policy authorities.” ~ Peter C. Earle

Playing Chicken with a Stack of Steering Wheels

“People often complain about the ‘irrationality’ of politics, but there is nothing irrational about the process that has given rise to our crushing debt burden. Voters really do want lower deficits, provided it does not involve either cutting spending or raising taxes.” ~ Michael Munger

How Congress Should Reform the Fed

“Congress should narrow the Fed’s regulatory concerns to maintaining adequate bank capital. It should also consider abolishing the discount window entirely.” ~ Alexander William Salter

So Why Aren’t We Paying Down the National Debt?

“The world will remain a dangerous place, but the further the nation is from its credit limit, the more effectively the government will be able to respond when, not if, something goes seriously awry.” ~ Robert E. Wright

Krugman’s Magic Act

“We’ve reached a point where the political class’s primary concern is no longer doing what’s best for the economy, but getting around the letter of the law while fooling the public as to what they’re really doing.” ~ Antony Davies

Hamilton’s Haircuts

“Whatever you think of the wisdom of Hamilton’s moves, our point is simple and stark: The US government has defaulted in the past.” ~ David R. Henderson and Jeffrey R. Hummel

Tax Day: Inverting the Experience

“Tax season’s sophisticated sleight-of-hand will have most Americans wondering what they’ll buy with their refund, instead of questioning whether they saw results for all the dollars they won’t get back.” ~ Laura Williams

One Nation Under Debt: Hamilton, Jefferson, and the History of What We Owe

The US National Debt, 1787-1900 

Let’s Cut the Budget Nonsense

“The Biden administration’s goal seems to be to spend lots of money on new unnecessary programs or failing existing programs, and to pay for it with yet more debt and with novel taxes likely to fall more heavily on middle class Americans and small businesses than on big corporations or the rich.” ~ Robert E. Wright