KeithHennessey.com

I began this blog at the end of March after the stimulus bill had become law.  I had been struck by how much the stimulus debate had focused on whether the bill was efficient.  (It clearly was not.)  There was much less discussion of whether the stimulus would be effective, and of the timing of [...]

The President emphasized the importance of health care reform in Tuesday evening’s press conference.  One of his arguments was that reforming health care would help address federal and state government fiscal problems:
What we have to do is bend the curve on these deficit projections.  And the best way for us to do that is to [...]

We are frequently asked whether there should be a “second stimulus” bill.  Unfortunately, what is being considered on Capitol Hill is a very different animal from what we did earlier this year.

10-second macroeconomic review
GDP    = Consumption + Investment + Government spending + Exports – Imports
= C + I + G + X – M

In January [...]

President Bush has signed into law 15 bills cutting taxes.  The 2001 and 2003 tax laws were the biggies.  Here’s a list.
This President has a well-established record as a tax cutter.  Many of our critics argue that we cut taxes too much, and that we need to repeal some or all of the enacted tax [...]

On Monday Dr. Edward Lazear, Chairman of the President’s Council of Economic Advisers, released the Economic Report of the President for 2008.
This traditionally is released a week after the President’s Budget.  It describes the state of the U.S. economy, and also discusses in more detail a range of economic policy issues.  As the ERP is [...]

The House passed the bipartisan growth bill (aka the “stimulus bill”) yesterday on an overwhelming 385-35 vote.  93% of Democrats and 85% of Republicans voted aye.  That vote is a direct result of the cooperation among Speaker Pelosi, Republican Leader Boehner, and Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson on behalf of the President.
The bill now heads to [...]