Op-Eds
Benn Steil's op-ed for Paul Solman's PBS The Business Desk site looks critically at calls for "a new Bretton Woods." He argues that many of the critical precepts behind the 1944 American Bretton Woods blueprint were overturned by the Truman Administration a mere three years later, and that the operation of the Bretton Woods monetary system was far briefer and more troubled than is typically reckoned.
See more in Economics, Geoeconomics, International Finance
Peter Orszag writes that making cities more resilient to the challenges of stormwater runoff is a wise investment to minimize climate change-related damage.
See more in Economics, Energy/Environment, Climate Change, Disasters
Peter Orszag argues that giving health-care providers a fixed payment for each Medicare beneficiary could provide a path forward between competing views of health care reform offered by Republicans and Democrats.
See more in Economics, Health, Science, and Technology, Health, U.S. Strategy and Politics
Benn Steil explains in his column for Dow Jones' Financial News why the latest craze in monetary policymaking—targeting nominal output—has no staying power.
See more in Economics, Capital Markets, Geoeconomics, International Finance
Peter Orszag examines how cities could foster more public-private partnerships in infrastructure construction with revenue-based auctions.
See more in Economics, Geoeconomics, Infrastructure
Michael Spence outlines the conflicting objectives that President Obama and the U.S. Congress must reconcile as they negotiate a new federal budget.
See more in Economics, Capital Markets, Geoeconomics, Infrastructure, International Finance, Labor, Congress, Presidency
Peter Orszag argues that switching to the chained consumer price index for calculating Social Security cost-of-living adjustments will not make as much of a difference as many seem to think.
See more in Economics, Geoeconomics, Society and Culture, U.S. Strategy and Politics, Congress, Organization of Government, Presidency
Peter Orszag writes that the link between life expectancy and college completion is not well understood, but they appear to be related to growing income inequality.
See more in Economics, Labor, Health, Science, and Technology, Education, Health
Peter Orszag argues that low interest rates and high unemployment make today an ideal time to repair deteriorating U.S. infrastructure.
See more in Economics, Financial Crises, Geoeconomics, Infrastructure
Peter Orszag writes that, although health care costs have been rising more slowly, recent data suggest Medicare spending growth may have sped up slightly in the past few months.
See more in Geoeconomics, Health
Michael Spence examines what options the Italian government has for restoring economic growth as eurozone efforts at stabilization the banking sector and sovereign-debt markets founder.
See more in Germany, Italy, EU, Economic Development, Financial Crises, Geoeconomics, International Finance
Peter Orszag highlights research findings that reinforce the usefulness of test scores in evaluating teacher performance.
See more in Economics, Children, Education
Benn Steil's op-ed on Bloomberg Echoes describes the drama surrounding the collapse of dollar-starved Britain's empire in the wake of WWII.
See more in Capital Markets, Geoeconomics, International Finance
Peter Orszag argues that widening gaps in college completion rates between rich and poor students not only undermines the American ideal of equal opportunity, but also misses an economic opportunity to boost productivity.
See more in Geoeconomics, Labor, Education
Peter Orszag argues that reforming medical malpractice law to include "safe harbors" that protect doctors who follow evidence-based medical guidelines could bring down health-care costs without reducing the quality of care.
See more in Economics, Health, Science, and Technology, Health
Benn Steil's Wall Street Journal op-ed explains the unique historical circumstances in which the Bretton Woods international monetary system emerged in 1944, and why calls for "a new Bretton Woods" today will go unsatisfied.
See more in United States, China, Japan, South Korea, Emerging Markets, Geoeconomics, International Finance
Jagdish Bhagwati contends that proposals for immigration reform centered on guestworker programs will be unsuccessful in stemming the inflow of undocumented workers.
See more in Mexico, United States, Geoeconomics, Labor
Michael Spence argues that effective management of the assets side of national balance sheets is critical for promoting market efficiency, innovation, and resiliency.
See more in Economic Development, Financial Crises, Geoeconomics, Infrastructure, International Finance
Peter Orszag argues that simplifying access to financial aid can help more Americans earn college degrees, reduce inequality, and boost economic growth.
See more in Economic Development, Labor, Education
Peter Orszag finds good news about health care costs in the latest budgetary and economic projections released by the CBO, but he cautions that the outlook for unemployment and federal spending is still gloomy.
See more in Financial Crises, Geoeconomics