Alexander W. Salter

"It’s time to end mandate drift once and for all. We need qualified nominees who understand the proper role of monetary policy. Unfortunately, Dr. Cook falls short on both counts." ~ Alexander William Salter

"We must decide, so long as we have a central bank, what we want it to do. The best feasible reforms tighten the Fed’s leash. A constrained Fed is a competent Fed. A drifting Fed is a danger to the public." ~ Alexander William Salter

"Economics is indeed universal: While it might not say everything about something, it says something about everything. Thanks to Hennessey, many more people will know it." ~ Alexander William Salter

"In the long run, the money supply isn’t that important. But in the short- to medium-run, it’s pretty important. There are good reasons for the money supply to change." ~ Alexander William Salter

"The American public understands inflation and policymakers have a reasonable degree of control over it. When choosing a policy rule, we need humility first and foremost. Let’s stop asking the Fed for more than it can deliver." ~ Alexander William Salter

"If we want to understand inflation, we need a framework to organize our thoughts. Economies are fiendishly complex; without a model that helps us focus on the relevant details, we’re lost in the woods." ~ Alexander William Salter

"When it comes to fiscal policy, we’re off the edge of the map. The typical stories told by unreconstructed Keynesians are clearly wrong. But that doesn’t mean we never need to worry about fiscal inflation." ~ Alexander W. Salter

"If we want to argue deficits matter more conventionally, we’ll have to do some more theoretical heavy lifting. The usual aggregate demand stories we tell don’t cut it." ~ Alexander William Salter

"The Journal is usually a bastion of sound economics. Alas, nobody bats 1.000. If we want an economic 'return to normalcy,' we have to get these basics right." ~ Alexander William Salter

"The usefulness of supply and demand is most obvious in the case of microeconomics, which focuses on households and firms. But it’s just as handy for macroeconomics in studying economy-wide phenomena like growth and business cycles." ~ Alexander William Salter