

Macro Musings with David Beckworth
Mercatus Center at George Mason University
Hosted by David Beckworth of the Mercatus Center, Macro Musings pulls back the curtain on the important macroeconomic issues of the past, present, and future.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Aug 17, 2018 • 57min
120 - Josh Hendrickson on Using Monetary Policy as a Jobs Guarantee
Josh Hendrickson is an associate professor of economics at the University of Mississippi, where he specializes in monetary economics. He also writes for his blog, The Everyday Economist. Josh is a returning guest to the show, and he joins today to talk about his new paper, *Monetary Policy as a Jobs Guarantee*. David and Josh discuss how monetary policy can be better outsourced to the market as well as the Fed’s past mistakes, and what it can do to improve in the future. Josh’s Twitter: @RebelEconProf Josh’s blog: https://everydayecon.wordpress.com/ Related Links: *Monetary Policy as a Jobs Guarantee* by Josh Hendrickson https://www.mercatus.org/publications/monetary-policy/monetary-policy-jobs-guarantee *What Measure of Inflation Should A Central Bank Target?* by Greg Mankiw and Ricardo Reis https://www.ecb.europa.eu/pub/pdf/scpwps/ecbwp170.pdf?5a6c189e978749a5299b76ab370771e5 David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth

Aug 13, 2018 • 1h
119 - Tim Lee on Technological Innovation, Productivity, and Economic Growth
Tim Lee is a senior reporter for Ars Technica covering tech policy, blockchain technologies, and the future of transportation. Tim was formerly with Vox, where he covered tech issues and the economy. He joins the show today to discuss technological innovation, economic growth, and implications for policy. David and Tim also discuss the radical changes coming to transportation, the uncertain future of productivity growth, and how society should respond to the structural changes that may accompany further technological advancement. Tim’s Twitter: @binarybits Tim’s Ars Technica profile: https://arstechnica.com/author/timlee/ Related Links: *9 Radical Changes that are Coming to Transportation* by Tim Lee https://www.vox.com/new-money/2017/4/26/15363592/tesla-uber-google-waymo-spacex-innovation *Self-driving Technology is Going to Change A Lot More Than Cars* by Tim Lee https://arstechnica.com/cars/2018/05/self-driving-technology-is-going-to-change-a-lot-more-than-cars/ *Electric, Self-flying, Vertical Takeoff Taxis are Coming to New Zealand* by Tim Lee https://arstechnica.com/cars/2018/03/flying-taxis-backed-by-larry-page-could-come-to-new-zealand-in-3-years/ *The Productivity Paradox: Why We’re Getting More Innovation but Less Growth* by Tim Lee https://www.vox.com/new-money/2016/10/24/13327014/productivity-paradox-innovation-growth *The End of the Internet Startup* by Tim Lee https://www.vox.com/new-money/2017/7/11/15929014/end-of-the-internet-startup *The Complacent Class: The Self-Defeating Quest for the American Dream* by Tyler Cowen https://read.macmillan.com/lp/the-complacent-class/ David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth

Aug 6, 2018 • 1h 7min
118 - Kevin Erdmann on Housing Shortages and a New Understanding of the Great Recession
Kevin Erdmann is an independent researcher and blogger at Idiosyncratic Whisk, where he explores economic and financial topics such as housing, investment, and speculation. He is also the author of an upcoming book titled, *Locked Out: How the Shortage of Urban Housing is Wrecking our Economy*, and he joins the show today to discuss it. Contrary to popular belief, Kevin argues we built too few houses not too many, during the housing bubble. David and Kevin break down this housing shortage problem, as they explore how the limited supply of housing in closed access cities may have helped fuel the Great Recession. Kevin’s Twitter: @KAErdmann Kevin’s blog: http://idiosyncraticwhisk.blogspot.com/ Related Links: *A Slide Deck on the Bubble and Crisis* by Kevin Erdmann http://idiosyncraticwhisk.blogspot.com/p/a-slide-deck-on-bubble-and-crisis.html *Housing: Part 238 – Home Price Changes Over Time* by Kevin Erdmann http://idiosyncraticwhisk.blogspot.com/2017/06/housing-part-238-home-price-changes.html *Housing Constraints and Spatial Misallocation* by Enrico Moretti & Chang-Tai Hsieh https://www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=10.1257/mac.20170388&&from=f David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth

Jul 30, 2018 • 56min
117 - Morgan Ricks on the Features and Advantages of Federal Reserve Bank Accounts
Morgan Ricks is a law professor at Vanderbilt University and studies financial regulation. Between 2009 and 2010, he was a senior policy advisor and financial restructuring expert at the U.S. Department of Treasury, where he focused primarily on financial stability initiatives and capital market policy in response to the Financial Crisis. Morgan is a returning guest to Macro Musings, and he joins the show today to discuss his most recent paper, *Central Banking for All: A Public Option for Bank Accounts*. David and Morgan also discuss the features and changes that come with Fed bank accounts, how these accounts would positively affect low income families, and how this system could be created. Morgan’s Twitter: @MorganRicks1 Morgan’s Vanderbilt profile: https://law.vanderbilt.edu/bio/morgan-ricks Related Links: *Central Banking for All: A Public Option for Bank Accounts* by Morgan Ricks, John Crawford, and Lev Menand https://greatdemocracyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/FedAccountsGDI.pdf David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth

Jul 19, 2018 • 1h 2min
116 - Ashoka Mody on the Origins of the Euro and the Euro Crisis
Ashoka Mody is a professor of international economic policy at Princeton University and formerly worked at the IMF and the World Bank. He joins the show today to discuss his new book, *EuroTragedy: A Drama in Nine Acts*. David and Ashoka also delve deep into the history of the Euro, as they discuss its complicated political origins and why its creation may have been a mistake. Ashoka’s Twitter: @AshokaMody Ashoka’s Princeton profile: https://scholar.princeton.edu/amody/home Related Links: *EuroTragedy: A Drama in Nine Acts* by Ashoka Mody https://global.oup.com/academic/product/eurotragedy-9780199351381?cc=us&lang=en& *EMU and International Conflict* by Martin Feldstein https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/europe/1997-11-01/emu-and-international-conflict David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth

Jul 16, 2018 • 57min
115 - Monica de Bolle on the Economic Challenges Facing Argentina and Venezuela
Monica de Bolle is a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics and an associate professor at Johns Hopkins University. Monica is published widely on the subject of Latin American economies, and she joins the show today to explain some of the recent financial and economic developments in Argentina and Venezuela. David and Monica also analyze the political atmosphere and policy environment that led to Argentina’s current economic hardships and discuss where the country might be if they had not pursued such policies. Monica’s Twitter: @bollemdb Monica’s PIIE profile: https://piie.com/experts/senior-research-staff/monica-de-bolle Related Links: *Argentina: Back to the Brink* by Monica de Bolle https://piie.com/blogs/realtime-economic-issues-watch/argentina-back-brink David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth

Jul 9, 2018 • 1h 5min
114 - Mark Copelovitch on the Political Economy of the Global Recession and the Eurozone Crisis
Mark Copelovitch is an associate professor of political science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and studies the politics of international trade, money, and finance. He joins the show today to discuss the politics of the global recession and the Eurozone Crisis. David and Mark dive deep into these topics, as they examine how policymakers failed during the Great Recession, and how effects of the Eurozone crisis varied across Europe. They also discuss whether the recent Italian elections can be viewed as a consequence of Eurozone failures. Mark’s Twitter: @mcopelov Mark’s University of Wisconsin-Madison profile: https://polisci.wisc.edu/people/faculty/mark-copelovitch Related Links: *This Time Should Have Been Different: The Causes and Consequences of Macroeconomic Policy Failure in the Great Recession* by Mark Copelovitch https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3059991 *The Monetary Policy Origins of the Eurozone Crisis* by David Beckworth https://www.mercatus.org/system/files/Beckworth-Eurozone-Crisis-v1.pdf *A Plan to Save the Euro* by Jeffry Frieden https://voxeu.org/article/plan-save-euro *Going to Extremes: Politics After Financial Crises, 1870–2014* by Manuel Funke, Moritz Schularick & Christoph Trebesch https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0014292116300587 David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth

Jul 2, 2018 • 59min
113 – Dan Griswold on the Benefits and Myths of Immigration
Dan Griswold is a research fellow and co-director for the Program on the American Economy and Globalization at the Mercatus Center. He is a nationally recognized expert on trade and immigration and is a previous guest on Macro Musings. He joins the show today to discuss his recent policy brief, *The Benefits of Immigration: Addressing the Key Myths* in addition to some of his other work on the issue. Some of the topics Dan and David explore include immigration’s positive effects on economic growth, the importance of immigrants in maintaining demographic stability, and other false narratives surrounding their perceived fiscal impact. Dan’s Twitter: @DanielGriswold Dan’s Mercatus profile: https://www.mercatus.org/daniel-griswold Related Links: *The Benefits of Immigration: Addressing the Key Myths* by Dan Griswold https://www.mercatus.org/publications/benefits-of-immigration-key-myths *The Economic and Fiscal Consequences of Immigration* by the National Academies of Sciences https://www.nap.edu/catalog/23550/the-economic-and-fiscal-consequences-of-immigration *The Integration of Immigrants into American Society* by the National Academies of Sciences https://www.nap.edu/catalog/21746/the-integration-of-immigrants-into-american-society *Reforming the U.S. Immigration System to Promote Growth* by Dan Griswold https://www.mercatus.org/publications/reforming-us-immigration-system-economic-growth *Immigrants and Conservatives are Cut from the Same Cloth* by Dan Griswold https://townhall.com/columnists/danielgriswold/2018/04/25/immigrants-and-conservatives-are-cut-from-the-same-cloth-n2474499 *What the June Rate Hikes Mean for the Future of the Fed* by David Beckworth https://www.mercatus.org/bridge/podcasts/06262018/what-june-rate-hikes-mean-future-fed?utm_source=soundcloud&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=macromusings David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth

Jun 25, 2018 • 59min
112 – Larry Ball on the Lehman Brothers Collapse and Its Role in the Great Recession
Larry Ball is a professor and department chair of economics at Johns Hopkins University. He is published widely in the field of macroeconomics and joins the show today to discuss his new book, *The Fed and Lehman Brothers: Setting the Record Straight on a Financial Disaster* and its implications for potential future crises. David and Larry also dive deep into the events leading up to the Lehman collapse, the effects it had on the broader economy, and the lessons that can be learned from the fallout ten years later. Larry’s Johns Hopkins profile: http://econ.jhu.edu/directory/laurence-m-ball/ Larry’s NBER archive: http://www.nber.org/people/laurence_ball Related Links: *The Fed and Lehman Brothers: Setting the Record Straight on a Financial Disaster* by Laurence Ball https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/fed-and-lehman-brothers/14BE6C2AD579DC4782EC27F2A6AF2FA6 David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth

Jun 18, 2018 • 1h 5min
111 - Nick Timiraos on the History and Economics of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
Nick Timiraos is a national economics correspondent for the Wall Street Journal and covers topics relating to the Federal Reserve. He also covered the housing bust and the government’s response to the mortgage crisis during the Great Recession as well as the government-sponsored enterprises, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Nick joins the show today to discuss the long and controversial history surrounding the two GSEs on the 10 year anniversary of their conservatorship. David and Nick also discuss the evolution of the U.S. housing market as well as the advent and characteristics of securitization. Nick’s Twitter: @NickTimiraos Nick’s Wall Street Journal profile: https://www.wsj.com/news/author/5585 Related Links: *The U.S. Mortgage Market: Chart Edition* by David Beckworth (includes the market share chart referenced at 25:20 during the episode.) http://macromarketmusings.blogspot.com/2018/05/the-us-mortgage-market-chart-edition.html David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth