Loved your book (it was my first foray into economics and you were super helpful in that regard), and I'm thrilled you've started this newsletter and seem to be workings towards addressing the everyday relevance of MMT (and calling BS to the deficit myth, as usual). It's greatly appreciated, and an idea that I can't wait to bring up this Thanksgiving, watching eyes go wide when I mention the power of the purse and the deficits that matter :)
Question: Is it just the default, gold-standard-era knee-jerk reaction that defines these head-in-the-sand responses to spending, or do you think people like Manchin know better, but they believe it's more politically popular to be "fiscally responsible" than to actually do big things?
So depressing to see Manchin’s foolish words about leaving for future grandchildren something that could easily be altered by future fiscal policy decisions if there were a need.
What is alarmingly paramount in the preservation of our future generation’s quality of life (if not life expectancy itself) is the need for the very legislation he is working to sabotage. So, again depressing as we would need his vote to pass the reconciliation bill. I think he is lying when he says the “debt” (aka savings accounts at the Fed in the form of interest bearing treasuries) are why he is not in support. I believe the real reason is payoffs and politics.
Manchin is a dishonest actor and will be one of the key reasons the 🇺🇸 failed to act at the last point climate scientists have said we need to cease BAU (business as usual) and change direction with regard to carbon emissions. Here’s hoping we have endless pandemics to keep carbon emissions at record lows as we seem to lack the wisdom and the political will to implement what’s necessary to preserve human habitat.
I'm a big fan Stephanie having just read 'Deficit Myth'. In Australia, we're reading that inflation in the USA is starting to become a factor. If that's the case, doesn't Manchin at least have a point regarding the timing of such government spending? There's no doubt that the USA has the fiscal capacity to absorb a lot of the new infrastructure expenditure but, maybe, not ALL of it and therefore some increase in inflation has to be expected?
The inflation we are experiencing in America is due to constraints on the supply line from the pandemic. Anybody working in the supply chain can and has confirmed this. It's a supply issue, not a demand issue. Also, we are talking about 3.5T in federal spending over ten years. In that same amount of time, the GDP of the USA is projected to be about 288T. I believe we can absorb all of it easily. In fact, I think 3.5T is kind of lowballing what the country needs, but that's just my humble opinion. Good questions, my friend!
Loved your book (it was my first foray into economics and you were super helpful in that regard), and I'm thrilled you've started this newsletter and seem to be workings towards addressing the everyday relevance of MMT (and calling BS to the deficit myth, as usual). It's greatly appreciated, and an idea that I can't wait to bring up this Thanksgiving, watching eyes go wide when I mention the power of the purse and the deficits that matter :)
Question: Is it just the default, gold-standard-era knee-jerk reaction that defines these head-in-the-sand responses to spending, or do you think people like Manchin know better, but they believe it's more politically popular to be "fiscally responsible" than to actually do big things?
So depressing to see Manchin’s foolish words about leaving for future grandchildren something that could easily be altered by future fiscal policy decisions if there were a need.
What is alarmingly paramount in the preservation of our future generation’s quality of life (if not life expectancy itself) is the need for the very legislation he is working to sabotage. So, again depressing as we would need his vote to pass the reconciliation bill. I think he is lying when he says the “debt” (aka savings accounts at the Fed in the form of interest bearing treasuries) are why he is not in support. I believe the real reason is payoffs and politics.
Manchin is a dishonest actor and will be one of the key reasons the 🇺🇸 failed to act at the last point climate scientists have said we need to cease BAU (business as usual) and change direction with regard to carbon emissions. Here’s hoping we have endless pandemics to keep carbon emissions at record lows as we seem to lack the wisdom and the political will to implement what’s necessary to preserve human habitat.
this bs talking point works so they keep using it. it's entirely false but truth was the first casualty
the deficit bs has worked so they keep using it. Stephanie blew it out of the water but they just keep lying.
I'm a big fan Stephanie having just read 'Deficit Myth'. In Australia, we're reading that inflation in the USA is starting to become a factor. If that's the case, doesn't Manchin at least have a point regarding the timing of such government spending? There's no doubt that the USA has the fiscal capacity to absorb a lot of the new infrastructure expenditure but, maybe, not ALL of it and therefore some increase in inflation has to be expected?
The inflation we are experiencing in America is due to constraints on the supply line from the pandemic. Anybody working in the supply chain can and has confirmed this. It's a supply issue, not a demand issue. Also, we are talking about 3.5T in federal spending over ten years. In that same amount of time, the GDP of the USA is projected to be about 288T. I believe we can absorb all of it easily. In fact, I think 3.5T is kind of lowballing what the country needs, but that's just my humble opinion. Good questions, my friend!
Thanks Peter. So good to be conversing with people who have extensive knowledge about MMT