Paul Krugman

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

Shamelessness is their superpower https://t.co/iLKwUQc7Ch — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

Not just about predictive accuracy. Inflation only gets entrenched if wage- and price-setters believe it will be sustained. Surveys say ordinary people don't — they expect one hot year then return to normal. Suggests that we won't need a recession to cool things down. — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

Interesting stuff. We can argue about the details, but the point is that there wasn't a clear decline in real wages — certainly not large enough to explain very negative views about the economy https://t.co/TlxVP6kUXu — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

RT @ChadBown: The trade war with China was uniquely Trumpian. His trade policies were foolish and costly — they failed by any measure you c… — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

Just on the economics, that's a terrible comparison. Crude oil prices are set in world markets; retail prices for refined products aren't. A complete false equivalence. — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

Given their hack gap — the unwillingness of their experts to say things they know are false — Ds can't match this triumph of marketing over reality. But they can talk about actual achievements, like the spectacular jobs recovery we've had 6/ — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

So every time you hear Rs talking about how they're the party of growth, bear in mind that it's pure vaporware. They have never demonstrated any ability to raise the economy's growth rate 5/ — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

See the big upturn under Reagan? Neither do I 4/ https://t.co/TuDGeGNJAU — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

But GOP claims to be good at generating growth rest on ... nothing. If supply-side economics had anything to it, you would expect, say, to see an acceleration in the growth of potential output after Reagan's tax cuts 3/ — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

And on the other hand, relentless marketing can create the illusion of achievement where none exists. For example, I keep seeing that Democrats have to offer their own version of growth-oriented, supply-side economics, to match GOP focus on growth 2/ — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

Greg Sargent argues that Democrats can help themselves by banging the drum on their substantial economic accomplishments — and my read of political history says that he's right. A good economy doesn't sell itself 1/ https://t.co/qMONkWzbwH — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

To add a further clarification: under normal circumstances I would expect tariff cuts to be fully passed on to consumers. But right now import volume is constrained by shipping and port capacity, so the usual incidence analysis isn't relevant 7/ — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

Basically, I don't see a coherent case that cutting gas taxes wouldn't offer short-run relief while cutting tariffs would; if anything, it may be the opposite. What am I missing? 6/ — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

To be clear, taxing gasoline is a good long-run policy; in fact, fossil fuels should be taxed much more heavily than they are. Protectionism, on the other hand, is a bad policy. But that shouldn't affect our assessment of what changes in taxes would do to consumer prices 5/ — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

At the same time, many economists are urging Biden to eliminate the Trump tariffs on imports, saying that this would reduce inflation. But we're in a supply-chain crisis! Wouldn't the short-run benefits of lower tariffs mostly go to the shipping industry? 4/ — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

Crude prices are set on world markets; US refinery capacity utilization is if anything a bit low by historical norms. Isn't this a situation in which you would normally expect tax cuts to be passed on to consumers? 3/ https://t.co/jt5piDV9BR — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

All right-thinking economists are condemning the idea of temporarily cutting gasoline taxes, saying that it would do little to help consumers and mainly help oil companies. Is this right? 2/ — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

OK, I'm a bit puzzled at some economics commentary about (a) gas taxes and (b) tariffs — or specifically at what looks a bit like a double standard, or at least some inconsistent reasoning 1/ — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

I know that the indoctrinated won't believe this; no amount of evidence will convince them that downtown NYC wasn't burned down by BLM mobs. But the rest of us should be clear about what did and didn't happen 4/ — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

The Canadian blockades, by contrast, have inflicted a remarkable amount of damage despite involving few people — because causing harm was the deliberate goal. So no hypocrisy in saying that excessive force was used against BLM, inadequate against blockaders 3/ — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

Fox myth-making to the contrary, BLM wasn't an orgy of arson and looting, in fact remarkably peaceful. And it was about *demonstrating* — showing solidarity — rather than deliberate infliction of damage, even if there was (inevitably) some damage at the edges 2/ — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

Accusations of hypocrisy on both sides over Canada; right asks why liberals didn't want crackdown on BLM demonstrators, left asking why right is OK with blockades by "truckers" (mostly not actually truckers). Important to understand the non-equivalence 1/ https://t.co/l6yxG0dN0E — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

The right loves vandalism when it’s for their cause https://t.co/RjHRNLr4XB — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

This is really good news: inflation expectations haven't become entrenched. Suggests that the Fed may be able to restore stability without a recession 2/ — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

Seeing some people make a big deal of the decline in medium-term inflation expectations. But the more important point is the gap between 1- and 3-year expectations, showing that people don't expect inflation to persist 1/ https://t.co/IrQuixwvQw https://t.co/rqhMPqLQzE — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

RT @GC_CUNY: Happening this Wed, 2/16! Reserve: https://t.co/N8vOPpKm9H — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

Not at the top of Trump's awfulness, but his diplomacy was pathetically ineffective; every country he dealt with took him to the cleaners. — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

Not the whole story; the supply-chain stuff and Great Resignation have added a bunch of further uncertainty. But in general, central banks that don't feel themselves to be facing hard choices are probably playing it much too safe, at the economy's expense 4/ — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

And because not much upside inflation risk, you can move gradually, so not much recession risk either. It's all good! Except that you end up reining in growth and jobs at a point with substantial slack, and hence big economic waste 3/ — PolitiTweet.org

Paul Krugman @paulkrugman

If you start raising rates with the economy still well below capacity, which in retrospect is what happened in 2015, not much inflation risk on the upside; but bc inflation is sticky downward, not much on the downside either. 2/ — PolitiTweet.org