

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

Jun 11, 2018 • 56min
110 - Brian Blackstone on the ECB and the Swiss Referendum on Sovereign Money
Brian Blackstone is a Switzerland bureau chief for the Wall Street Journal and previously covered the European Central Bank from the Wall Street Journal’s Frankfurt office as well as the Federal Reserve during the financial crisis. He joins the show today to talk about the Swiss referendum on sovereign money in addition to his insights on the European Central Bank. David and Brian also discuss the effects of an enlarged balance sheet at the Swiss National Bank, whether they should be the only national entity in control of money creation, and how the Swiss economy has fared since the Great Recession. Brian’s Twitter: @Blackstonebrian Brian’s WSJ profile: https://www.wsj.com/news/author/7515 Related Links: *How Switzerland Lost a Currency Battle, but Won the War* by Brian Blackstone and Pat Minczeski https://www.wsj.com/articles/how-switzerland-lost-a-currency-battle-but-won-the-war-1524216601 *Why Italy is Flirting with Euro Exit and Spain Isn’t* by Greg Ip https://www.wsj.com/articles/why-italy-is-flirting-with-euro-exit-and-spain-isnt-1528040526 David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth

Jun 4, 2018 • 52min
109 - Christine McDaniel on International Trade and Intellectual Property
Christine McDaniel is a senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center with the Program on the American Economy and Globalization. Christine previously held several positions within the U.S. government including deputy assistant secretary at the Treasury Department and senior trade economist in the White House Council of Economic Advisors. She joins the show today to talk about the issues of intellectual property and trade. David and Christine also discuss the importance of reviving the Trans-Pacific Partnership, problems with patent systems across the globe, and the history and current scale of intellectual property theft. Christine’s Twitter: @christinemcdan Christine’s Mercatus profile: https://www.mercatus.org/christine-mcdaniel David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth

May 28, 2018 • 57min
108 - Sam Hammond on Welfare Reform and Social Insurance
Sam Hammond is a poverty and welfare policy analyst for the Niskanen Center and has recently published a new paper titled, *The Free-Market Welfare State: Preserving Dynamism in a Volatile World*. He joins the show today to discuss the paper along with some of his other research. Sam and David also discuss the repercussions of the China shock, how to reform America’s welfare system, and the design characteristics that would define an ideal social insurance state. Sam’s Twitter: @hamandcheese Sam’s Medium profile: https://medium.com/@hamandcheese Related Links: *The Free-Market Welfare State: Preserving Dynamism in a Volatile World* by Sam Hammond https://niskanencenter.org/blog/the-free-market-welfare-state-preserving-dynamism-in-a-volatile-world/ *From Tiananmen to Outsourcing: the Effect of rising Import Competition on Congressional Voting Towards China* by John Seungmin Kuk, Deborah Seligsohn, & Jiakun Jack Zhang https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10670564.2017.1363024?journalCode=cjcc20 *Populism and the Economics of Globalization* by Dani Rodrik https://drodrik.scholar.harvard.edu/files/dani-rodrik/files/populism_and_the_economics_of_globalization.pdf *Food Stamp Entrepreneurs* by Gareth Olds https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Publication%20Files/16-143_2cf7ba14-5bfa-4c34-85d9-0edc0ddc7ce6.pdf *If You Want to Rebuild Civil Society, Don’t Abolish Welfare – Decentralize it* by Sam Hammond https://niskanencenter.org/blog/rebuild-american-community/ *Diversity and Crowd-Out: A Theory of Cold-glow Giving* by Daniel M. Hungerman http://www.nber.org/papers/w13348.pdf *It Takes a Nation* by Rebecca Blank https://www.amazon.com/Takes-Nation-Rebecca-M-Blank/dp/0691004013 *Filthy Lucre: Economics for People Who Hate Capitalism* by Joseph Heath https://www.amazon.com/Filthy-Lucre-Economics-People-Capitalism-ebook/dp/B0058DTHNU David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth

May 21, 2018 • 1h 2min
107 - Michael Darda on Inflation, Market Monetarism, and Fed Policy
Michael Darda is a chief economist and market strategist at MKM Partners. Michael is also a frequent guest on financial television and radio and is routinely quoted in “The Wall Street Journal”, “The New York Times”, “Barron’s”, and other financial publications. He joins the show today to talk about his work conducting macroeconomic market research as well as his views on the market itself. David and Michael also discuss his shift from supply-side economics to market monetarism, the Fed’s performance during and after the Great Recession, and the potential effects of a flattening Treasury yield curve. David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth Michael’s MKM Partners profile: http://www.mkmpartners.com/research/ Michael’s Bloomberg profile: https://www.bloomberg.com/research/stocks/private/person.asp?personId=48822180&privcapId=40334090

May 14, 2018 • 59min
106 – Razeen Sally on Protectionism, International Trade, and China
Razeen Sally is an associate professor at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy at the National University of Singapore and formerly taught at the London School of Economics. He is also the Chairman of the Institute of Policy Studies, the main economic policy think tank in Sri Lanka and a senior advisor to Sri Lanka’s Minister of Finance. Today, he joins the show to discuss the state of international economic affairs and how it specifically relates to Asia. Razeen explains why he believes the U.S. should stay engaged within Asia and also shares his thoughts on China’s demographic problem as well as the effects of the Trump administration’s increased protectionism. David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth Razeen’s Lee Kuan Yew profile: http://lkyspp.nus.edu.sg/our-people/our-faculty/faculty-profile/razeen-sally Razeen’s Twitter: @razeensally Related Links: *Why Global Order Still Needs America in Asia* by Razeen Sally http://ecipe.org/app/uploads/2017/07/Razeen-Sally-Quadrant-July-2017.pdf

May 7, 2018 • 59min
105 – David Andolfatto on Inflation and the Phillips Curve
David Andolfatto, Vice President of the St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank, discusses the Phillips Curve, low inflation mysteries, global money demand, and US debt dynamics. They analyze the debate on inflation and unemployment link, portfolio rebalancing in recessions, and explore alternative monetary policy targets. Emphasis on nuanced policies and robust policy-making amidst economic uncertainties.

Apr 30, 2018 • 1h 4min
104 - Jim Hamilton on Econometrics, Energy Markets, and Low Interest Rates
Jim Hamilton is a professor of economics at the University of California-San Diego and the author of *Time Series Analysis,* a popular graduate-level econometrics textbook. Today, Jim joins the show to discuss his work in econometrics as well as his research on the role oil plays in the U.S. economy. He also shares his thoughts on how oil will continue to shape the economy in light of the rise of clean energy. David and Jim also discuss recent U.S. monetary policy and why interest rates have been so very low. David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth Jim Hamilton’s UC San Diego profile: http://econweb.ucsd.edu/~jhamilton/ Jim Hamilton’s Twitter: @JHamilton _UCSD Jim Hamilton's blog: http://econbrowser.com/ *Time Series Analysis* by James Hamilton https://www.amazon.com/Time-Analysis-James-Douglas-Hamilton/dp/0691042896

Apr 23, 2018 • 1h 2min
103 - Daniela Gabor on Safe Assets and Shadow Banking
Daniela Gabor is a professor of economics and finance at the University of West England at Bristol and a monetary economist. She specializes in shadow banking, capital markets, and transnational banking. Today, she joins the show to discuss her new paper, *Chasing Unicorns: The European Single Safe Asset Project*. David and Daniela also discuss merits of equity-based banking, elements of the shadow banking system, and Europe’s quest for a safe asset. David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth Daniela’s Twitter: @DanielaGabor Daniela’s UWE Bristol profile: https://people.uwe.ac.uk/Person/DanielaGabor Related Links: *Chasing Unicorns: The European Single Safe Asset Project* by Daniela Gabor http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1024529418759638 *Inside Safe Assets* by Anna Gelpern and Erik Gerding https://scholarship.law.georgetown.edu/facpub/1831/ *The Growth of Financial Banking* by Anna Youngman https://www.jstor.org/stable/1817326?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents *The Repo and Reverse Markets* by Marcia Stigum https://books.google.com/books/about/The_Repo_and_Reverse_Markets.html?id=wJ6OZlHFYDoC *The New York Money Market: Origins and Development* and *The New York Money Market: Uses of Funds* by Margaret Myers et al. https://books.google.com/books/about/The_New_York_Money_Market_Origins_and_de.html?id=InFaAAAAYAAJ https://books.google.co.uk/books/about/The_New_York_Money_Market_Uses_of_funds.html?id=cXVaAAAAYAAJ&redir_esc=y

Apr 16, 2018 • 1h 19min
102 – Morgan Ricks on *Money as Infrastructure* and Bank Regulations
Morgan Ricks is a law professor at Vanderbilt University. Previously, he was a senior policy advisor and financial restructuring expert at the U.S. Treasury Department where he focused primarily on financial stability initiatives and capital market policy in response to the financial crisis. Today, he joins the show to discuss his new paper, *Money as Infrastructure* where he contrasts what he calls the “intermediation paradigm” of banking and the “money paradigm.” Morgan also shares his thoughts on the government’s role in money, the history of free banking, and current-day banking regulation. David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth Morgan’s Twitter: @MorganRicks1 Morgan’s Vanderbilt profile: https://law.vanderbilt.edu/bio/morgan-ricks Related Links: *Money as Infrastructure* by Morgan Ricks https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3070270 *The Money Problem* by Morgan Ricks http://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/M/bo22438821.html

Apr 9, 2018 • 54min
101 – Ioana Marinescu on Universal Basic Income
Ioana Marinescu is an assistant professor of economics at the University of Pennsylvania and a faculty research fellow at the National Bureau of Economic Research. Today she joins the show to highlight her work on the concept of a Universal Basic Income (UBI). David and Ioana discuss how a UBI would work and how it compares and contrasts with Milton Friedman’s related negative income tax proposal. They also discuss the economic and social effects of a UBI, some experimental evidence of the policy, and the political feasibility of such a program. David’s blog: macromarketmusings.blogspot.com David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth Ioana’s Twitter: @mioana Ioana’s website: http://www.marinescu.eu/ Related Links: *No Strings Attached: The Behavioral Effects of U.S. Unconditional Cash Transfer Programs* by Ioana Marinescu http://www.marinescu.eu/Marinescu_UBI_review_2017.pdf *The Labor Market Impacts of Universal and Permanent Cash Transfers: Evidence from the Alaska Permanent Fund* by Damon Jones and Ioana Marinescu http://home.uchicago.edu/~j1s/Jones_Alaska.pdf