Who will be the next Fed chairman? Don't look at me. But in reading the Boston Globe's story on the speculation about Greenspan's replacement, I caught this nugget about Martin Feldstein, Harvard economics prof and former chair of the Council of Economic Advisors under Reagan, and Glenn Hubbard, Columbia economics prof who served under W in that capacity:
Handicappers generally put Feldstein, 65, on top, in part because he is the best-known. He has had a distinguished teaching career at Harvard and served from 1982 to 1984 as chairman of the CEA, a post that Greenspan used as a stepping stone to the Fed job.
Some say Hubbard, 46, might have an inside track because of his strong support for Bush's tax cuts. Also, doubts linger among some conservative GOP supply-siders about Feldstein, given his reputation as a deficit hawk (emphasis added).
So, there you have it. Wanting to cut the deficit is a bad thing if you're a conservative, though I guess we've had plenty of warning that was the case already.
And aren't they lucky they didn't pass that balanced budget ammendment back in the mid-nineties. They'd really be screwed now. It's funny what an about face republicans have taken: I do vividly remember certain politicians, in the mid-nineties screeming about the profligate ways of democrats, spiralling budget deficits, states rights, and unfunded mandates. Funny. What a difference 10 years makes.
Posted by: brew | December 01, 2004 at 03:00 PM