Wednesday round up: Stoll, Bolduc and Costa on Gingrich; Jenkins on Romney; CNN reports the euro falling below $1.30.

From The NY Sun, Ira Stoll suggests Newt Gingrich has surged in part because his tax policies are superior to Mitt Romney’s.

In The WSJ, Holman Jenkins Jr. argues the nation needs a problem solver like Romney.

At NRO, Brian Bolduc reports that Gingrich saw supply-side economics' political potential early, but wasn’t deeply interested in the economic details.

On The Kudlow Report, Robert Costa discusses US Rep. Paul Ryan's (WI) critique of Gingrich for not edorsing unpopular entitlement reforms:



CNN notes the euro falling below $1.30.

The WSJ highlights the rise of regulation under the current administration.

At Forbes, Bill Flax argues pending tax increases and regulation are strangling business.

In IBD, Jim Gilmore proposes interesting pro-growth ideas but omits dollar stability.

On CNBC, John Carney cites Jude Wanniski’s view that budget deficits should be considered relative to the total size of the economy.

From First Trust, Brian Wesbury and Robert Stein see the economy improving and doubt the Fed will enact QE3.

On CNN, Stephen Moore argues unemployment benefits go on too long:



At The Freeman, the late great Julian Simon supports immigration.

In The Washington Post, Charles Lane highlights conservative Keynesian Martin Feldstein’s long-standing opposition to the euro.

From the archive, Feldstein advocates dollar “competitiveness” via a lower exchange rate.

Weekend edition: Lewis on trade deficits; The WSJ, Moore and Kudlow critique the President's jobs plan; Malpass on Greece.

From Forbes, Nathan Lewis suggests the gold standard didn’t keep the trade deficit down. This chart seems to counter Lewis’s analysis:

At Forbes, Bill Flax argues the recovery is stalled by unsound money.

The WSJ critiques the President’s job proposal. Stephen Moore comments on the plan. In NRO, Larry Kudlow adds his two cents.

On The Kudlow Report, David Malpass discusses Greece:





At Forbes, Peter Ferrara defends Reaganomics.

From National Review in November 1980, the late, great Robert D. Novak describes the challenges facing the newly-elected Reagan Administration, including cutting tax rates, restoring a gold standard, and fighting off Republican austerity advocates.

In The WSJ, James Grant reviews a book on economists.

Also in The WSJ, Cato’s Daniel Ikenson advocates lowering tariffs on imported raw materials.

As important as access to foreign markets is, however, some of the most significant obstacles to U.S. export success aren't foreign-made but homegrown. If the president is genuinely committed to spurring economic growth and job creation, he will take the lead on reducing or eliminating duties that U.S. producers pay on imported raw materials and components they need for manufacturing. This would instantly boost the competitiveness of U.S. products at home and abroad.

From Heritage, Curtis Dubay sets the record straight on the effects on growth of the Clinton tax hikes and the Bush tax cuts.

IHS features George Mason’s Don Boudreaux explaining free trade:



The Tax Foundation’s William McBride analyzes the true level of taxes paid by corporations.

At Forbes, Charles Kadlec notes the high jobless rate among African Americans.

Weekend update: Reynolds says QE2 hurt the recovery; Lewis congratulates Republicans for stopping tax hikes; Mundell sees the euro surviving.

From The WSJ, Alan Reynolds argues QE2 damaged the US economy.

On Forbes, Nathan Lewis congratulates Republicans for holding firm against tax hikes during the budget debate.

The Globe and Mail (Canada) reports on Robert Mundell’s recent public appearance.

Reuters notes Nobel laureates, including Mundell, see the euro continuing.

At Fox Business News, Lew Lehrman suggests the yuan is undervalued and that China is a dangerous, mercantilist threat (h/t: TGSN):




In The WSJ, Stephen Moore contrasts the Reagan recovery with Obama’s.

At Forbes, Bill Flax argues that WW II did not end the Great Depression.

In National Affairs, Seth Lipsky answers the question, what is a dollar?

From Forbes, Peter Ferrara challenges inequality claims.

At The Daily Caller, Jamie Weinstein notes a supply-side slip by progressive Jacob Weisberg.

In The WSJ, Carl Kelm reports Gov. Rick Perry’s (TX) surge in the polls.

At COAL, Paul Krugman explains the Keynesian theory of Japan’s liquidity trap.

Also on COAL, Krugman notes the CBO’s estimate of lost revenue due to the recession/malaise.

Weekend edition: Moore mocks Keynsians; DeGaulle on gold and the dollar; The NY Sun says Lehrman is Rueff's heir.

In The WSJ, Stephen Moore mocks Keynesian economics.

At COAL, Paul Krugman responds.

On YouTube, Charles DeGaulle foresees debt problems and monetary instability stemming from the dollar standard (h/t: TGSN):




The NY Sun suggests Lew Lehrman is the intellectual heir to DeGaulle advisor Jacques Rueff.

On Gold Money, French journalist Pierre Jovanovic discusses DeGaulle, Bretton Woods and gold.

Scotland’s Herald weighs the pros and cons of the gold standard.

At The American, Alex Pollock notes the dollar’s weakness against gold and other currencies since the 1971 Nixon Shock.

On RCM, John Tamny defends Gov. Rick Perry’s (TX) Fed comments.

The WSJ defends Perry’s job creation record.

In RCM, Robert Tracinski suggests Nixon, not Rick Perry, is responsible for politicizing the Fed.

On Fox Business News, Steve Forbes discusses banks, Warren Buffett, and the dollar:




At Forbes, Peter Ferrara rebuts Buffett’s tax-hike advocacy.

In The Financial Times, Chris Caldwell analyzes Buffett’s argument.

On CNS News, Matt Cover notes Buffett’s tax solution won’t solve the deficit
(h/t: Ralph Benko).

From The American, Tino Sanandaji and Arvid Malm debunk soak-the-rich claims.

The WSJ discounts the incentive effect of the President’s one-year payroll tax cut extension.

The biggest problem with Mr. Obama's payroll tax cut is that it's temporary. Employers hire workers based on their business needs and the costs of each new employee. They aren't likely to add workers based on lower tax costs if they know those costs are going to rise in a year. That's especially true when employers also know that ObamaCare is going to raise their cost of hiring in 2013.

Mr. Obama's payroll break is also only an indirect hiring incentive because it goes to the worker, not the employer who does the hiring. The President's Keynesians see the tax cut mainly as one more stimulus to boost consumer spending, and thus economic demand. As the President recently explained, the idea is to "put $1,000 in the pockets of American workers."

At Fiscal Times, Bruce Bartlett explains that in addition to marginal tax rates, income thresholds for high tax rates matters too.

On Larry Kudlow’s radio show, Sen. Jim DeMint (SC) discusses extension of the one-year payroll tax cut (around 39 minutes). Also, Larry notes the 22:1 oil-to-gold ratio and suggests gold may be overpriced; if the Fed doesn’t initiate QE3 at this week’s Aspen conference, look for it to drop.

In The WSJ, Allysia Finley notes Gov. Mitt Romney’s (MA) opposition to tax cuts for the rich.

At The Washington Times, Nita Ghei suggests the world has learned from the Smoot-Hawley mistake.

On Forbes, Bill Flax critiques Nobel Laureate Joseph Stiglitz’s Keynesian prescriptions.

From AP, Tom Raum explains that recession is the deficit’s main cause.

From The Washington Post, Ezra Klein suggests today’s sound money advocates are equivalent to 1937 opponents of monetary easing.

On TNR, Jonathan Chait critiques Jude Wanniski’s analysis of how WW II started.

Thursday items: Hanke on slow money supply growth; Kudlow on the IEA; Calhoun on needed reforms.

From RCM, Cato's Steve Hanke suggests slower money supply growth will leave the economy in a slump.

On NRO, Larry Kudlow likens the IEA oil release to QE3.

At RCM, Joseph Calhoun advocates broad government and economic reform, starting with a stable dollar.

On The Kudlow Report, John Harwood reports on the GOP walkout of budget talks:




At Forbes, Bill Flax notes the monetary roots of the present malaise.

On TGSN, Ralph Benko features an 1841 article that notes the role of money in market errors.

At Forbes, Jerry Bowyer argues Robert Mundell’s attempt to save Europe has failed.

The NYT notes the Fed’s failure to repair the economy.

At COAL, Paul Krugman says Keynesian economics has come through the recent crisis “with flying colors.”

Weekend update: Lewis on the stability of gold-backed currency; Domitrovic on the fiat dollar; Tamny discusses the dollar.

From Forbes, Nathan Lewis clarifies that the gold standard’s purpose is to create a currency that is stable in value.

On IBD, Brian Domitrovic argues the fiat dollar has allowed the U.S. fiscal and current account deficits.

The WSJ notes the failure of the President’s Keynesian policies.

IBD contrasts the Reagan recovery with the current one.

On The Kudlow Report, John Tamny discusses the dollar’s fall:




At Forbes, Tamny reports on one wealthy American who is “shrugging.”

From The Washington Post, George Will confirms that tax rates impact business decisions.

In The NYT, Roger Lowenstein defends the current monetary system.

The Times of India reports nations moving into dollar alternatives.

At Forbes, Bill Flax criticizes Ben Bernanke for continuing QE2.

On This Week with Christiane Amanpour, Jack Kemp-protégé U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan (WI) predicts debt – not growth and jobs – will be the focus of the 2012 election:




NPR’s Robert Smith attempts to rebut the claim that the rich flee high tax states.

On Forbes, Bret Swanson praises Mitch Daniels’ management style.

The NYT profiles Gary North, whose Christian Economics includes support for the gold standard.

Thursday round up: Reuters on the ECB; Bowyer says don't panic on the dollar; Grant discusses Fed policy.

In The WSJ, Seth Lipsky reports the story of a man convicted of minting his own coins.

Reuters reports the European Central Bank may raise interest rates ahead of the Fed.

At Forbes, Jerry Bowyer counsels worry, not panic, about the dollar.

On The Kudlow Report, James Grant discusses the dollar's decline:



On RCM, Michael Pento argues the Fed is imperiling the entire economy by trying to inflate the housing market.

From RCM, John Tamny advises Japan not to focus on the faulty concept of GDP.

At Forbes, Bill Flax salutes America’s entrepreneurs.

The WSJ excerpts the tax cut portion of Robert Mundell’s speech at last week’s supply-side conference:


At NRO, Larry Kudlow advocates increased oil drilling.

From The American Spectator, Peter Ferrara suggests Keynesian spending doesn’t create wealth.

NPR’s Diane Rehm Show puzzles over rising food prices and smaller food packages.

The NYT reports the smaller package trend too.

Weekend round up: Lewis on debt and growth; Brenner on macroeconomics; Goldman analyzes the economy.

From Forbes, Nathan Lewis explains that getting the debt under control requires stronger economic growth.

In The Washington Examiner, Lewis Lehrman and John Mueller advocate monetary reform.

At Forbes, Reuven Brenner inveighs against macroeconomists’ faulty understanding of history.

On The Kudlow Report, David Goldman analyzes the economy’s condition:



At Forbes, Bill Flax ties Japan’s recovery prospects versus Haiti’s with their respective economic policies.

At The WSJ, Kim Strassel reports Senate Democrats’ plan to blame speculators and energy companies for oil prices.

In its weekly address, Republicans focus on growth and employment.

In The Journal, hedge fund manager Paul Singer sees monetary policy as a major threat.

Weekend round up: Lewis on currency boards; Danker on Utah's hard money legislation; Mitchell opposes raising taxes to lower the deficit.

From Forbes, Nathan Lewis argues that a currency board system tied to a specific gold price would fix the dollar.

Also at Forbes, Rich Danker suggests Utah’s bill to make gold and silver legal tender is the first tangible evidence of a populist revolt against Washington's weak dollar policy.

On The Kudlow Report, Stephen Moore discusses high oil prices:



At Forbes, Bill Flax links high oil prices to the weak dollar.

From New World Economics, Nathan Lewis continues his analysis of bank reserves.

Cato’s Dan Mitchell supports Grover Norquist’s argument that higher taxes will not lower the deficit.

At Heritage, David Weinberger cites Alan Reynolds on income inequality:

First, as Reynolds points out, shifting tax rates have influenced how income has been reported to the IRS. For example, after individual tax rate reductions throughout the 80s and 2000s, businesses shifted from corporate tax returns to individual tax returns, since they would pay less in taxes shifting income to the lower individual rate. This resulted in increased reported income at the top, when in reality there was a lot of income shifting – though not necessarily gaining – which Reynolds found to account for “more than half of the
apparent increase in the top 1 percent’s income share since 1986.”

Second, Reynolds argues that the Piketty-Saez tax return study excludes many transfer payments for low-income families, because these payments don’t show up in IRS data. These include things like Social Security, Medicare, food stamps and other lower-income subsidies. Excluding these payments shrinks the percentage of total income for lower income groups, making it appear to expand the percentage of total income top earners collect. Of course, employer health care contributions, which tend to favor upper-income earners and therefore offset some of the transfer payments to lower-income individuals, also need to be taken into account. But overall, middle- and lower-income earners receive
more subsidies than upper-income earners.

Third, tax rates also affect capital gains realizations. Prior to the 1987 capital gains tax increase, capital gains accounted for “18 percent or less of all the broadly defined income reported on the top 1 percent of individual income tax returns in the early 1980s,” according to Reynolds. However, starting in 1987, capital gains realizations as a share of the top 1 percent of incomes dropped to an average of 7.3 percent for the next decade.

From Cato, Robert F. Mullgan reports the institute's William Niskanen is working to rehabilitate the Phillips Curve.

On Forbes, Reuven Brenner suggests government art subsidies weaken the culture.

At Fiscal Times, Bruce Bartlett reviews Douglas Irwin’s Peddling Protectionism on the Smoot-Hawley tariff.

Weekend items: Rose roundtable on gold, Benko on the dollar standard, Kudlow on Utah's gold bill.

From December, Charlie Rose hosts an excellent roundtable on gold and the dollar.
(h/t: Ralph Benko)

At TGSN, Ralph Benko lists nine weaknesses that accompany a dollar standard, including necessitating a perpetual trade deficit while enabling a chronic budget deficit.

On Asia Times, David Goldman notes the recovery remains weak and lopsided.

At The Kudlow Report, Larry discusses Utah’s bill recognizing gold and silver as legal tender:



The NY Sun analyzes the latest exchange between House Monetary Policy Subcommittee Chairman Ron Paul (TX) and Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke.

From Forbes, Bill Flax explains that inflation is never a good policy.

Also on Kudlow, John Tamny debates unions, budgets, and Social Security reform:



At Huffington Post, Nathan Lewis explains the conservative critique of unions.

On Forbes, Reuven Brenner advocates putting public union compensation to a vote.

ABC promotes “buy America” as the solution to U.S. unemployment:



On NRO, Larry Kudlow notes that so far high oil hasn’t derailed the stock market.

From New World Economics, Nathan Lewis discusses bank reserves.

At COAL, Paul Krugman argues that British budget cuts haven’t increased business confidence:


On Time, David Von Drehle suggests claims of rising inequality are overblown.

At Lew Rockwell, Robert Wenzel blasts Karl Rove and supply-side economics.

Weekend round up.

From Forbes, Nathan Lewis highlights the genius of the 18th century gold standard.

At New World Economics, Lewis notes that demand for stable money is much higher than for unstable.

The WSJ editorial board disputes Goldman Sachs’s recent Keynesian analysis of spending cuts.

On The Kudlow Report, Stephen Moore debates the Wisconsin budget battle:



At RCM, Joe Calhoun sees hopes for real fiscal reform fading.

From last week's WSJ, weak dollar advocate Fred Bergsten discusses his successful campaign to force China to appreciate the yuan.

At PIIE, Bergsten advocates three global currencies.

On Kudlow, James Pethokoukis and Peter Navarro debate the rise of China and India:



From Seeking Alpha, Kevin McElroy explains why currency devaluation is bad policy.

The Economist notes the American Economic Review’s list of top 100 articles includes Robert Mundell’s Theory of Optimum Currency Areas.

In another sign of inflation, GOOD notes the declining size of various products.

From NCPA, former Federal Reserve governor Bob McTeer claims surprise at calls for Fed reform since it has done a good job keeping inflation low.

On Forbes, John Tamny discusses the economic growth rates in Texas and California.

Also at Forbes, Bill Flax hopes Congress will shut down government.

From Forbes, Reuven Brenner suggests taxing smoking through higher health care costs rather than cigarettes.

Friday items.

At The Gold Standard Now, Ralph Benko examines the Triffin Dilemma and how a gold standard would solve it.

CNN reports the IMF's call for a dollar alternative. (Hat tip: Dan Clifton, Strategas Research Partners.)

Gulf News suggests Robert Mundell supports moving away from the dollar as reserve currency.

On The Kudlow Report, Stephen Moore discusses the economy’s strength:



From Forbes, Bill Flax argues supply-side economics’ flaw is that it brings in too much revenue.

At RCM, Keynesian Robert Samuelson correctly concludes that President Reagan’s greatest economic achievement was defeating inflation, but gives Fed Chairman Volcker more credit than he deserves (see last night’s Domitrovic item), and downplays the impact of lower tax rates.

Youtube provides the new Atlas Shrugged movie trailer:



In Forbes, Reuven Brenner notes Social Security may alter the relationship of children and parents.

At The NYT, Paul Krugman derides U.S. Reps. Paul Ryan (WI) and Ron Paul (TX) for advocating sound money.

Weekend update.

At Forbes, Nathan Lewis explains why many economists favor floating currency.

Also on Forbes, Bill Flax makes the libertarian case for a gold-backed currency.

In The WSJ, monetarist Allan Meltzer likens current Fed policy to the 1970s:

In the 1970s, despite rising inflation, members of the Federal Reserve's policy committee repeatedly chose to lower interest rates to reduce unemployment. Their Phillips Curve models, which charted an inverse relationship between unemployment and inflation, told them that inflation could wait and be addressed at a more opportune time. They were flummoxed when inflation and unemployment rose together throughout the decade.

In 1979, shortly after becoming Fed chairman, Paul Volcker told a Sunday talk-show audience that reducing inflation was the best way to reduce unemployment. He abandoned the faulty Phillips Curve thinking that unemployment was the enemy of inflation. And he told the Fed's staff that while he thought highly of their work, he did not find their inflation forecasts useful. Instead of focusing on near-term output and employment, he changed the Fed's policy to put more emphasis on the longer-term reduction of inflation. That required a persistent policy that President Reagan supported even in the severe 1982 recession.

We know the result: Inflation came down and stayed down. The Volcker disinflation ushered in two decades of low inflation and relatively steady growth, punctuated by a few short, mild recessions. And as Mr. Volcker predicted, the unemployment rate fell after the inflation rate fell. The dollar strengthened.

From RCM, Larry Kudlow suggests the economy is in better shape than the recent employment report indicates, but he worries about inflation.

In Human Events, Tony Lee recounts Jack Kemp’s role in Reagan’s success.

On Fox, Steve Forbes argues Reaganomics would fix today’s economy as well:




Cato’s Dan Mitchell posts a good video of Reagan.

The NYT quotes Art Laffer supporting Reaganomics with an unfortunate simile:

[O]ne of the most damning testimonials comes from a fan, the economist Arthur Laffer, ardent proponent of supply-side economics and father of the Laffer Curve.

“Trickle-down economics is if you feed the horse enough oats, the sparrow will survive on the highway,” he explains cheerfully.

On The Kudlow Report, Larry, Mrs. Kudlow, Stephen Moore and Craig Shirley discuss Reagan’s successes:




On Forbes, John Tamny argues Walmart boosts the economy.

At Dallas Blog, Fr. Charles McCloskey reviews Kemp-staffer John D. Mueller’s Redeeming Economics.

A Cato Institute study blames Fed monetary policy for recent market bubbles and warns of decapitalization.