Tag Archives: Trump

Caligula Reincarnated

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February 6, 2026 — Each time we think we have exhausted the question of what explains the crazy things that Donald Trump says and does, he comes out with something even crazier, which sends us back to the puzzle anew.

The first conclusion, popular during Trump’s first presidency, was that his assertions were never meant to be taken literally.  But as he has followed through on a growing number of threats, from seeking revenge against political opponents to attacking Venezuela and kidnapping its president, this explanation has lost plausibility. read more

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Do Voters Pursue Their Economic Self-Interest?

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September 29, 2025 — As US President Donald Trump goes further and further off the rails in his demolition of long-standing rules and norms, it remains puzzling why so many Americans voted for him and continue to support him.  It is especially puzzling why so many lower and middle-income Americans support him, since his policies tend to their economic disadvantage.  Cutting federal spending on Medicaid and many other government services while simultaneously extending massive tax cuts for high-income households, does not sound crowd-pleasing populism.  But perhaps this is only puzzling to economists. read more

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No Mar-a-Lago Accord

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March 23, 2025 — What is to be made of proposals for a “Mar-a-Lago Accord” coming from some Trump devotees, notably Stephen Miran?  (He is the new Chair of President Trump’s Council of Economic Advisers.)

Sometime during the next 3 years and 10 months, Trump could well find some event that he will want to trumpet under the name of his Florida residence.   But the Mar-a-Lago Accord about which people are talking, regarding the dollar, doesn’t stand a chance.

  1. The return of international coordination?

The proposal comprises an effort, coordinated among large countries, to intervene to depreciate the dollar, in hopes of improving the US trade balance. That much resembles the successful 1985 Plaza Accord, which is said to be its inspiration.
One could imagine a sensible proposal for concerted intervention to bring down the dollar from its height, coordinated with American steps to cut its budget deficit and steps by Germany and China to increase their budget deficits, thus helping to address the fundamental causes of the international trade imbalances. But this is not that. read more

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