From The Financial Post (Canada), supply-side guru Robert Mundell sees a
bright future for the euro, but blames excessive spending and unstable exchange
rates for the Eurozone’s current troubles.
Also on The Financial Post, Terry Corcoran supports
Mundell’s analysis.
At Forbes, Nathan Lewis suggests a dual currency system
featuring gold for nations outside the major currency zones.
On The Kudlow Report, David Malpass discusses the
markets:
At The American, James Pethokoukis responds to Paul
Krugman’s claims that government spending led to the Reagan boom.
The WSJhighlights the President’s disastrous press
conference remarks on the economy.
At China Daily, Mundell applauds the People’s Bank of China
for lowering interest rates.
On CNBC, James Grant notes the Fed’s shrinking balance
sheet.
The WSJcriticizes Ben Bernanke for opposing spending
cuts, but applauds his rejection of tax increases.
From Forbes, Peter Ferrara compares the Obama economy to Argentina.
In The WSJ, Stephen Moore reports Democratic nervousness
about Taxmageddon.
At Newsmax, Steve Forbes advocates tax cuts rather than bailouts to revive Europe.
IBDnotes the President of Estonia’s response to Paul Krugman’s dismissal of its economic success.
From The Sun News Network, David Goldman doesn’t see a
way to keep the weak nations in the Eurozone:
On Fiscal Times, Bruce Bartlett notes the decline and
fall of organized labor.
From Market Watch, Harold Gold uses the Bush tax cuts to
declare supply-side economics false.
From the archive, here’s my assessment of the Bush tax
cuts.
On TGSN, Jon Decker reports the past use of vodka as a currency in Russia.
From The WSJ, David Malpass suggests Greece’s departure from the euro will be a benefit primarily for currency traders.
In Forbes, Nathan Lewis argues the dollar/gold price should be set at $1600.
At RCM, John Tamny blames Eliot Spitzer’s harassment of tech investors for Facebook’s IPO difficulties. On The Kudlow Report, James Pethokoukis debates the deficit:
In The WSJ, Paul Rubin explains to the President that profits direct markets to better serve consumers.
From Bloomberg, Amity Shlaes defends the gold standard against critics.
In The FT (free registration required), US Rep. Ron Paul (TX) lambasts central bankers.
At Forbes, Louis Woodhill highlights declining business investment.
On The Kudlow Report, David Malpass analyzes Mitt Romney’s focus on issues other than growth:
On his show, Rush Limbaugh tutors a college student on supply-side economics.
At Forbes, Steve Forbes reviewsFreedom’s Forge: How American Business Produced Victory in World War II.
Market Watch reports China’s intention to accelerate yuan reform. In Commentary, Abe Greenwald notes the violent plans of some members of the Occupy crowd. On Kudlow, a newly bearish David Goldman discusses declining business investment and predicts lower job growth:
From Alhambra Partners, John Chapman analyzes the debate over Glenn Hubbard’s recent deficit and debt analysis. In The WSJ, Stephen Moore analyzes the Republican chances of losing the House. Undiscussed is the House GOP’s focus on budget balancing rather than strong growth measures.
From The WSJ, Art Laffer and Stephen Moore argue states without income taxes are economically healthier.
At Forbes, Steve Forbes urges Mitt Romney to defend free markets vigorously. In The WSJ, Mark Spitznagel explains how the Fed enriches the top 1%. On The Kudlow Report, David Malpass analyzes the slow recovery:
At Forbes, Peter Ferrara analyzes progressive economic fallacies. In The WSJ, Stephen Moore reports a Florida Tea Party dust up. From The Manhattan Institute, Diana Furchtgott-Roth explains that raising investment taxes will result in less investment and push capital overseas. At NRO, Larry Kudlow highlights the slow 2.5% growth rate. The NY Sunapplauds the Shadow Open Market Committee. At The Mises Institute, Frank Shostak doubts that Ben Bernanke saved the economy from another depression. From The Peterson Institute, C. Fred Bergsten argues for a lower dollar, tax increases (though not on businesses or incomes), and trade barriers on China unless it raises the yuan. Around 1:06, he suggests President Nixon’s 1971 import surcharge to “rebalance” world exchange rates was a success:
The Examinerreports US Rep. Eric Cantor (VA) citing supply-side economics in support of his small business tax cut bill. At The American, Steve Hayward doubts the instability of the oil-to-gold ratio.
At Forbes, Ralph Benko notes liberal opposition to US Rep. Kevin Brady’s Sound Dollar Act.
The editors of e21 analyze the tax contribution of the top 1% of earners.
At Forbes, David Malpass proposes a stronger dollar and tax reform to rev up growth. On The Kudlow Report, Malpass discusses the unemployment report and the Fed:
From NRO, Larry Kudlow shrugs at the weak employment report.
At RCM, Louis Woodhill highlights the recent poor employment report.
On NRO, Kudlow links Ben Bernanke’s backing off QE3 to declining commodities.
In The Telegraph, Ambrose Evans Pritchard examines gold’s recent decline.
From Project Syndicate, Daniel Gros compares dollar and euro easing.
In The WSJ, Kevin Warsh argues households deserve credit for the improving economy.
Also in The WSJ, Stephen Moore highlights Gov. Bill Haslam of Tennessee.
On The Kudlow Report, Dan Mitchell debates the Bush tax cuts’ expiration:
In The NYT, Benn Steil remembers the spy scandal that gave the US leadership of the World Bank rather than the IMF.
The CSMreports illegal immigration drying up in response to the weak economy.
In The WSJ, Karl Rove urges Mitt Romney to focus more on big ideas.
At The American Conservative, Rod Dreher suggests Romney, Gingrich and Santorum are substantially similar to President George W. Bush, but omits dollar policy from his analysis. On NRO, Larry Kudlow scorns the President’s focus on redistribution rather than wealth. At International Liberty, Dan Mitchell compares the Reagan and Obama recoveries. On The Kudlow Report, David Malpass sounds optimistic about the market:
MarketWatch profiles gold advocate James Grant. In The WSJ, former Sen. Phil Gramm (TX) and Mike Solon compare the current recovery to the past. From Bloomberg, Amity Shlaes argues lower tax rates can raise revenues. AP features comedian Chris Rock arguing for higher taxes.
At Forbes, Louis Woodhill satirizes the President’s SOTU proposals. The Economistreviews Bruce Bartlett’s new tax reform book.
From IBD, Alan Reynolds explains Mitt Romney’s tax return.
In The WSJ, David Malpass argues the Fed should listen to Ron Paul’s criticism. The WSJresponds to President Obama’s Buffett Rule would raise the capital gains tax to 1978 level. On The Kudlow Report, Newt Gingrich defends his support for President Reagan:
In The WSJ, Henry Nau explains the middle class shrank from 1980-2007 because more people became wealthy. From Bloomberg, Evan Schnidman and Daniel Nadler note the economy’s positive reaction in recent years to a weaker dollar. In The WSJ, Daniel Yergin suggests the new Thatcher bio-pic misses the pro-growth turnaround she led. At Fiscal Times, Bruce Bartlett says the flat tax will never fly.
From Forbes, Chris Barth reports David Malpass argues the dollar should rise due to tighter money, not the falling euro.
In Bloomberg, Amity Shlaes challenges Paul Krugman on fiscal austerity.
A reader comments: Amity Schlaes pens an austerity-can-lead-to-growth op-ed, dismissing Paul Krugman's call for more Keynesian spending, but commits a startling error:
...There is evidence that austerity did lead to growth in the past, and that it did not cause fascism. These examples may be less known, but they suggest that austerity can bring recovery faster than spending can.
A strong example in U.S. history is the recession of the early 1920s. Responding to a downturn, the federal government didn't spend; it cut itself in half. Recovery followed so rapidly few people even remember that recession.
Brian Domitrovic has written how there was virtual consensus between Presidents Wilson's and Harding's money men on reducing top marginal rates before the election, so how could Shlaes forget Mellon’s tax cutting agenda that kicked off the Roaring Twenties? The Revenue Act of 1921 brought the top marginal tax rate down to 58% in 1922 from 73%, and with subsequent reductions, Mellon was able to get that top tax rate down to 25% by 1925. The austerity of the 1920s did not take place without efforts to foster economic growth. In this, Shlaes was sloppy.
On NRO, Larry Kudlow reports Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (KY) pushing for the Keystone Pipeline in exchange for the payroll tax cut.
On The Kudlow Report, Steve Forbes discussesNational Review’s editorial opposing Newt Gingrich:
From Forbes, Louis Woodhill argues pro-growth policies explain Gingrich’s rise.
At The American, James Pethokoukis suggests Gingrich’s Iowa lead is softening.
In The American Spectator, Ben Stein predicts President Gingrich and Vice President Huntsman.
At The WSJ, Dan Henninger portrays Gingrich as Mitt Romney’s sparring partner, toughening the former governor up to debate President Obama.
On NRO, Elise Jordan sees Jon Huntsman failing to capitalize on recent opportunities.
At Forbes, Jerry Bowyer highlights the role of interest rates to functional economic and financial systems.
From First Trust, Brian Wesbury predicts unemployment will be down to 8% by Election Day.
On The WSJ, Steve Cortes argues the Chinese economic model won’t work in the long run:
In The WSJ, conservative Keynesian Martin Feldstein pans the Eurozone economic deal.
On C-SPAN, PIIE’s C. Fred Bergsten – Keynesian and key intellectual driver of the 1970s dollar devaluation and subsequent Great Inflation – argues more American jobs will come from rebalancing world trade by lowering the dollar’s exchange rate to a competitive level (around minute 13).
From The Laffer Center, the excellent Brian Domitrovic argues the Federal Reserve pursues a third policy mandate (beyond price stability and low unemployment), of accommodating the federal debt.
On Forbes, Domitrovic advises the President to pursue tax reform.
In The Washington Times, Richard Rahn challenges tax hike advocates.
On The Kudlow Report, David Goldman says the US economy is in good shape and northern Europe will fence off southern Europe to prevent financial contagion:
From Human Events, Burton Folsom, Jr sees parallels between today’s China currency pressure and Smoot-Hawley.
In The WSJ, Obama economist Austan Goolsbee argues the euro has damaged southern Europe:
Northern Europe has fueled its growth through exports. It has run huge trade imbalances, the most extreme of which with these same Southern European countries now in peril. Productivity rose dramatically compared to the South, but the currency did not. This explains at least part of the German export and manufacturing miracle of the last 12 years. In 1999, exports were 29% of German gross domestic product. By 2008, they were 47%—an increase vastly larger than in Italy, Spain and Greece, where the ratios increased modestly or even fell.
Germany's net export contribution to GDP (exports minus imports as a share of the economy) rose by nearly a factor of eight. Unlike almost every other high-income country, where manufacturing's share of the economy fell significantly, in Germany it actually rose as the price of German goods grew more and more attractive compared to those of other countries. In a key sense, Germany's currency has been to Southern Europe what China's has been to the U.S.
From Alhambra Investments, Joe Calhoun analyzes the European debt crisis.
At RCM, John Tamny suggests California will make a comeback when the dollar is stronger.
On Kudlow, David Malpass advocates for pro-growth policies in Europe:
On NRO, John Berlau reports Republican support for Sarbanes Oxley.
The Economistnotes the Congo’s currency rising against the dollar.
Rumor Mill: A knowledgeable source reports former-US Rep. (and now candidate) David McIntosh (IN) is chairing a Shadow Super Committee that will release a pro-growth alternative plan focused on capping – not cutting – spending, combined with reforms – including monetary – designed to raise growth to 4%.
In Forbes, John Tamny critiques Mitt Romney’s economic plan.
At The American, James Pethokoukis applauds Romney’s greater focus on growth, entitlement reform, and budget discipline.
In Forbes, Ralph Benko advocates growth with monetary reform.
Bring on the American Economic Miracle! How? One “miracle” was engineered in Germany, in 1948, by Ludwig Erhard; another, in 1958 France, by Jacques Rueff. The miraculous growth of the Reagan era (continuing through and ending with the Clinton administration) was founded in part on strengthening, rather than rubbishing, the dollar.
From The WSJ, Allan Metzler dissects the Keynesian model’s flaws.
Cato Journal features several good articles on monetary policy, including from David Malpass, Steve Hanke, and Gerald P. O’Driscoll. This one on flexible exchange rates is interesting.
At Forbes, Nathan Lewis applauds Rick Perry’s flat tax plan and wonders if he’ll adopt a strong dollar next.
In South Carolina’s The State, Steve Forbes predicts Perry will win the GOP nomination.
On Fox News, Perry provides a generally strong explanation of his economic plan:
At The WSJ, Steven Landsburg argues the death tax hurts the poor.
On International Liberty, Dan Mitchell coins Mitchell’s Golden Rule, "The private sector should grow faster than the government."
From Forbes, Peter Ferrara contrasts the Republican jobs plan with the President’s.
At Fox News, Herman Cain cites Jude Wanniski and Art Laffer among his tax plan’s influences.
On The Kudlow Report, Herman Cain advisor Rich Lowrie discusses the 9-9-9 plan:
At The American, Stephen Moore remembers economist William Niskanen.
The WSJnotes the immigration crackdown has led to labor shortages.
In The Washington Times, Heritage President Ed Feulner advocates a debate on monetary policy.
At The WSJ, David Malpass argues for European reform:
The euro zone's path forward is clear but politically difficult. As nations, they need to cut government spending, sell assets and allow private-sector competitiveness. As a part of a union, the euro zone has to divide up the losses from past deficits, restore confidence in sovereign bonds, and create a system that won't let politicians borrow as much as they did.
In a speech at Heritage, US Rep. Paul Ryan (WI) rejects class warfare.
On The Kudlow Report, James Pethokoukis debates income inequality data:
