What I've Been Up To

Trade Isn't Money for Nothing

Two Percent Inflation is a Myth

My Conversation with Harry Shearer

MMT Documentary "Finding the Money" on Tour Across Europe

Can Donald Trump Revolve on Debt Before its Too Late?

What Trump's Pick for Treasury Secretary Gets Right (and Wrong) about MMT

How Much is that Tax Cut in the Window?

How to Cut $2 Trillion in Federal Spending Without Breaking a Sweat

Flipping the Script

Wrapping Up the Australian Tour: I’m back from the film tour in Australia. I attended most of the screenings, and it’s safe to say that the ripple effects from the visit are still being felt in the public and private discourse. Thanks to Steven Hail, Gabie Bond, and many of their friends and students in the

Finding the Money Comes to Australia (Days 1-3): Greetings from Down Under! I know that many of you are reading The Lens from somewhere in Australia, and I hope to see you at one of the many events I’m doing over the next ten days. I arrived in Sydney on Sunday morning, March 5 (Australia) and spent a lovely day taking in the sights with MMT economist Professor

Hats Off to Big Fiscal and Big Immigration: I joined CNBC’s Squawk Box on Wednesday morning to respond to some breaking data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis. We learned (among other things) that the US economy grew at an exceptionally strong (3.2 percent) pace in the final quart of 2023. The segment starts around

Will We Ever See Zero Interest Rates Again?: Quick musings on ZIRP

Scenes from Warwick: Yesterday, I had the pleasure of speaking at the Warwick Economics Summit (WES) in Warwick, England. I decided to accept the invitation after learning that WES is the largest entirely student-run international forum in Europe. Being around large groups of young people—including my own students at Stony Brook University—energizes me more than anything else I do, so I always try to accommodate requests from students.

The MMT Eras Tour (Part 1): Three decades of getting the big stuff right. A showcase.

Sacred Cows: There was an interesting discussion with Evercore’s Roger Altman on CNBC’s Squawk Box yesterday. Altman talked about some of the things that economists, market participants, pundits, and policymakers have gotten wrong in recent years. Here’s part of what he said:

Media Notes: Well, it’s 2024 the year of dragon. Here in the U.S., it’s the year of rate cuts. Or is it recession? Or maybe it’s the year of the soft-landing. Some market participants even think it could be the year of accelerating inflation and, potentially, higher

Book (and other) News: Happy holidays! I hope that those of you who celebrate Thanksgiving had a joyous feast with friends and loved ones. Ordinarily, I would prepare at least a couple of side dishes the day before, but I wasn’t able to do that this year because I spent most of Wednesday in NYC at Danske Bank’s annual New York Summit.

Talking MMT with Tom Keene: I was on Bloomberg TV yesterday.

Finding the Money: Winning Awards and Coming to a Theatre Near You: As many of you know, the documentary Finding the Money had its world-premier at the Woodstock Film Festival almost one month ago. Since then, the film has been screened at festivals in Bend, Oregon and San Francisco, California. The reviews have been outstanding, and it won an

Can We Afford Two Wars?: Back in 2009, in the wake of the global financial crisis, Steve Scully asked President Obama when America would finally run out of money. The president replied, “We’re out of money now. We’re operating in deep deficits.” (click image to play) Last night, Scott Pelley

MMT the Movie: Coming to a Festival Near You: Long before Covid-19 disrupted everything, a filmmaker named Maren Poitras started following me around the country. She filmed me speaking at conferences, teaching, giving interviews, and going about daily life. She attended the Third International MMT Conference at Stony Brook University in September 2019, where she interviewed many of the world’s top MMT scholars. She also traveled to St. Croix for in-depth conversations with Warren Mosler.

Reactions to Fed Chair Powell's Speech: Like many of you, I watched Fed Chair Jerome Powell deliver his Jackson Hole speech this morning. It was short (though longer than last year’s) and mostly predictable. I wrote this post last week, noting: I think it’s pretty easy to anticipate what Powell will say at this year’s gathering. We’ve made substantial progress. But there is more work to do. We are firmly committed to brining inflation all the way back down to 2 percent. We’re not going to declar

How Should We Think About Fiscal Sustainability?: Yesterday, the Clinton Global Initiative announced that they’re partnering (again) with Net Impact for the Up to Us Campus Competition. The e-mail included the following attachment, along with a request to “share this material widely on your campus or with any students you know who may be interested in this opportunity.”