Presidential Candidates Have No Inflation Fighting Plans

NationalEconomist.com ^

[drbasketball]

...the presidential candidates have no plans that would fight inflation. In fact, for the most part they really don’t have a clue. How do I know? I was invited to attend a conference...The topic of the conference: The Presidential Candidates’ Domestic Policy Plans... The final panel was the eye opener. It consisted of senior economic advisers for the presidential candidates...The greatest economic threat over the next few years will be inflation, and it is not directly mentioned by these panelists. I thought it was about time to get these guys on record...

[edcoil]

“The greatest economic threat over the next few years will be inflation.”

Not true. However, if the author believes this then anyone not addressing his concern is not doing anything.

[Choose Ye This Day]

Tarullo, Obama’s adviser, took the question next. Tarullo addressed the question by stating that Obama’s concern for the middle class being squeezed (which Tarullo mentioned in his opening comments) indicated that Obama was concerned about inflation. However, Tarullo did not mention anything specific that Obama would do to deal with the inflation pressures on the middle class. He then stated that he expected recession, which he said would damper inflation.

Who needs a plan when you have HOPE? Hiiiiigh hopes, he's got hiiiiiigh hopes, he's got high apple pie in the skyyyyyy hopes!"

[Choose Ye This Day]

Do any of the three candidates, I wonder, have a plan to deal with the crushing insolvency of Social Security and (especially) Medicare, and how those two welfare programs are going to devour our federal budget over the next twenty years?

Nah. I didn’t think so.

That, to me, is the main economic problem facing this nation, and Washington insiders will keep doing what they’ve been doing for years: kick the can down the road. Let our children and our grandchildren worry about it and pay for it.

Inflation? Raise interest rates. Done.

Killing off the entitlement beast? No politician has the guts to take on that REAL problem.

[LegendHasIt]

"Do any of the three candidates, I wonder, have a plan to deal with the crushing insolvency of Social Security and (especially) Medicare, and how those two welfare programs are going to devour our federal budget over the next twenty years?"

No... But they all have plans to destroy the economy so badly that fixing Medicare and Social Security will be secondary and tertiary to being able to eat and stay warm.

[Busywhiskers]

1. With inflation (broad definition) reported at a 3.3% rate in the first quarter and core inflation at 2.2%, why do they need one.

2. Since inflation is a monetary phenomenon, and they don’t control the money supply, (the Fed does, thank God), why would we want them to have an inflation plan.

3. The higher prices we are now experiencing are the result of a woefully inept national energy policy which is something they do have control over. So what we ought to be paying attention to is what these half wits propose to do about building refineries, nuke plants and drilling for more oil.

[SoConPubbie]

What’s really maddening is that our guy, McCain, the self-described “Reagan Conservative”, refuses to embrace Reagan’s message of smaller government and tax-cuts.

Instead, he voted against President Bush’s tax cuts calling them tax-cuts for the rich, and will be responsible to dramatically adding to the size and scope of the Federal Government if he gets his way with his Health Care proposal and especially for his Carbon Cap and Trade scheme.

I don’t think you can call John McCain ignorant, all you are left with, with respect to his calling himself a Reagan Republican, is that he is a liar.

[PugetSoundSoldier]

Presidential Candidates Have No Inflation Fighting Plans

And all I can say is "THANK YOU!" I'll trust our businesses and people to do what's right by the economy to stave off inflation...

[ex-snook]

Inflation/debt is used to pay for tax-free wars. It is moderated by importing goods from cheaper labor countries which in turn fuels lower domestic pay, more dependency on government, more debt, more inflation, and the undiminished growth of the Democratic party with the don't tax me, tax my kids Republican party disappearing into oblivion.

Salvation awaits the development of exportable products since the Gingrich Third Wave information economy is the little engine that couldn't. We are the consuming economy and the specter of Third World is rising.

[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

RON PAUL!

[catfish1957]

Let’s call Jimmuh Carter. He handled that real well didn’t he? /s

[Jim Verdolini]

“The greatest economic threat over the next few years will be inflation.”

Not true. However, if the author believes this then anyone not addressing his concern is not doing anything.”

Inflation is out of control and todays money printing exercise by the fed will just make things worse.

[SecAmndmt]

“And all I can say is “THANK YOU!” I’ll trust our businesses and people to do what’s right by the economy to stave off inflation...”

No one will “stave off inflation” unless there is some control of the growth of money supply and issuance of credit. Interest rates should to be set by the market - much higher than they are now, IMHO - but the dollar needs to be a real dollar, not some perpetually devaluing piece of paper printed by the private Federal Reserve.