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Inflation Hawks: Mugged by Reality, Again

Remember how the Fed's easy money stance was supposed to drive commodity prices higher and higher? Ooops. S&P GSCI Index dropped 24% since April, signalling a bear market 4 Oct, 2011, 0506 hrs IST, Bloomberg LONDON: Commodities fell to a 10-month low as signs of a contraction …

Written by David Frum on Tuesday October 4, 2011

The Hobgoblin of Little Minds

At the end of the 1980s, the US was hit by a severe financial shock: the Savings & Loan crisis. I'll spare you the antique details of the crisis, but in 1990 the US found itself looking at perhaps $200 billion in federally insured bad loans by the failed S&L industry. The economy slipped …

Written by David Frum on Wednesday September 21, 2011

Nominal Growth Targeting ...

... sounds technical doesn't it? But those dry words represent a direct challenge to the GOP's current deflationary orthodoxy. Bravo to NRO for offering space to an economist to make the case. It’s time for conservative politicians to be bold and serious about monetary policy and not simply …

Written by David Frum on Tuesday September 13, 2011

Perry's Anti-Bernanke Posse

Rick Perry hasn't been running for president for a full week and he has already made a significant gaffe. ThinkProgress has caught video of Perry saying that Ben Bernanke's efforts at monetary stimulus are "almost treasonous" and that he would treat Bernanke "pretty ugly down in Texas." The …

Written by Noah Kristula-Green on Tuesday August 16, 2011

Economists vs. Economic Commentators

Vince Reinhart is a former director of the monetary division of the Federal Reserve. Now he's a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. He explains in this video that the debt problem is long term, not immediate; that tax increases have to be considered part of the policy mix; and …

Written by David Frum on Thursday August 4, 2011

Bernanke Gives Some Good News

There was some good news in Ben Bernanke's testimony today about the strength of the economy and the housing sector. Some good news in Ben Bernanke's testimony today: On the positive side, household debt burdens are declining, delinquency rates on credit card and auto loans are down …

Written by David Frum on Wednesday July 13, 2011

How America's First Central Bank Was Killed

Amid current political pressures to abolish the Fed, Independence Day weekend is a good time to look back at the end of the Fed’s early precursor. This year is the 200th anniversary of a political fight that terminated the Bank of the United States, the nation’s long-ago central bank. Amid …

Written by Kenneth Silber on Sunday July 3, 2011

Debt Debate: What Would Hamilton Do?

To get a fresh perspective, I attempted to contact the spirit of Alexander Hamilton for his take on the current political and economic debates in Washington. To get some perspective on current political and economic debates, I attempted to contact the spirit of Alexander Hamilton by resetting …

Written by Kenneth Silber on Tuesday April 19, 2011

Pawlenty Jumps on the Anti-Fed Bandwagon

Pawlenty's receiving criticism for claiming that the injection of “fiat money” into the economy has weakened it. But this isn’t the worst thing he’s said on monetary policy. Tim Pawlenty is receiving a lot of criticism for comments he made about monetary policy on Morning Joe , when he argued …

Written by Noah Kristula-Green on Wednesday March 30, 2011

The Trouble with Gold Bugs

If it's socialism for government to fix the price of copper, how is it libertarianism for government to fix the price of gold? ... is splendidly summed up in today's House testimony by Lewis Lehrman. A dollar convertible to gold would provide the necessary Federal Reserve discipline to …

Written by David Frum on Wednesday March 16, 2011

Bernanke: Budget Cuts Could Cost 200K Jobs

Bernanke: Budget Cuts Will Cost Jobs Reuters reports: Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said on Wednesday a Republican spending cut plan would not cause a big dent to U.S. economic growth, but could cost around 200,000 jobs. Bernanke said that a $60 billion cut along the lines …

Written by FrumForum News on Wednesday March 2, 2011

The Headlines Review

Napoleon Linardatos presents a humorous take on today's headlines. Napoleon Linardatos presents a humorous take on today’s headlines. “As Internet Booms, the Postal Service Fights Back” - New York Times , 08.28.09 The U.S. Postal Service plans to start its own email …

Written by Napoleon Linardatos on Sunday August 30, 2009

Overview for federal-reserve