Trump’s MAGA Economy Driven by Greed, Stupidity and Cowardice
We begin with the disconnect between concerns over debt that led to the selloff in the bond market that forced Trump to reverse his tariffs with a 90 day pause at the same time the Republican House passes tax cuts for billionaires that will blow up the deficit while Musk’s cuts to the IRS will mean reduced revenues to service the debt. Joining us to assess an American economy driven by greed, stupidity and cowardice is Joseph Stiglitz, a Nobel Prize–winning economist and the best-selling author of several books including People, Power, and Profits: Progressive Capitalism for an Age of Discontent, Globalization and Its Discontents Revisited: Anti-Globalization in the Age of Trump and The Road to Freedom: Economics and the Good Society. He was chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers under President Clinton, chief economist of the World Bank, named by Time as one of the 100 most influential individuals in the world, and now teaches at Columbia University and is chief economist of the Roosevelt Institute.
Will Trump’s Weakening of the Dollar Lead to a New Global Reserve Currency?
Then we look into Trump’s weakening of the dollar and how much his chaotic misrule will lead to the rest of the world looking for an alternative to the dollar as a global reserve currency and speak with Barry Eichengreen, a Professor of Economics and Political Science at the University of California, Berkeley. He is the author of several books including Emerging Giants: China and India in the World Economy, Exorbitant Privilege: The Rise and Fall of the Dollar, and Globalizing Capital: A History of the International Monetary System. We discuss his article at The Financial Times, “Can the dollar remain king of currencies?”
The Hollow Nature of Trump’s Promise of Gain After the Pain
Then finally we examine the hollow nature of Trump’s claim that the pain he is causing will be worth it in the end once he has upended globalism and brought back manufacturing to the USA. Joining us is Christopher Meissner, professor of economics at the University of California, Davis and a Research Associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research, with an emphasis on international finance and international trade. He is the author of the new book, One from the Many: The Global Economy Since 1850.