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The Missing Fed

The Federal Reserve is the most powerful unelected financial powerhouse in the world. Its impact on our economy and financial markets is staggering. Yet this unaccountable institution and its role in our economy and government is missing from the presidential debate. One has to wonder what the presidential candidates are afraid of. Perhaps pollsters are telling them to stay away from this issue. Perhaps pollsters are telling them that it is over the heads of voters. Voters may hear about nuclear centrifuges in Iran or even the complex science of global warning, but in the minds of political consultants, people’s

WaPo: Conservatives Take on the Fed in Jackson Hole

Today, The Washington Post reported on APP’s Jackson Hole Summit and the growing movement among conservatives concerned about the Fed’s monetary policy: They converged last week on a red barn here in the shadows of the Grand Tetons, a small but passionate group of free-market thinkers and conservative activists hoping to convince the Republican Party that the Federal Reserve is ruining the economy. That message is easily lost amid the latest Iowa poll numbers, the heated rhetoric over immigration and the megawatt personality of  billionaire presidential candidate Donald Trump. It has been six years since the end of the Great Recession, and the visceral

Jackson Hole Summit Reveals Obliviousness of Fed

Over at Forbes.com, Brian Domitrovic provides a solid rundown of last week’s Jackson Hole Summit, hosted by the American Principles Project.  Domitrovic argues that while the Fed’s concurrent conference remained mired in discussions of irrelevancies, APP’s summit featured true innovators whose ideas could have a significant impact: Jackson Hole was particularly weird for the Fed this year: it gave the impression that the institution is oblivious. It was also different at Jackson Hole this year because the Fed had company. There was a shadow conference hosted by the American Principles Project and run by Steve Lonegan, the man who in February had

Five Things Jim DeMint Taught Us At Jackson Hole

Senator Jim DeMint, President of the Heritage Foundation, gave the keynote speech on the second day of APIA’s Jackson Hole Summit Friday. DeMint covered a lot of ground, talking about the damaging effects of bad money and giving a passionate argument in favor of monetary reform. Here are just a few of the points DeMint covered about the battle for equitable prosperity: 1. “When I was a teenager nearly fifty years ago, I valued money based on the things that were important to me. For me, one dollar equaled three beers and a Slim Jim. …Today, however, one dollar will

Watch the Live Stream of the Jackson Hole Economic Summit

If you could not join American Principles Project in Wyoming, be sure to watch the live stream of the Jackson Hole Economic Summit.  You can watch here or below: The conference will start today at 11:00a (ET). You can catch the schedule here (the times listed in the schedule are Mountain Time.

Wake Up, Conservatives!

Several ThePulse2016 contributors, including Steve Lonegan, Ralph Benko, Frank Cannon, Terry Schilling, Shane Vander Hart, and others, have flown out to Jackson Hole, Wyoming, for a historic monetary policy conference organized by the American Principles Project.There are three major conferences taking place in Jackson Hole, Wyoming this week, and they all focus on the same issue: monetary policy.The Federal Reserve is having their annual symposium. Fed Up, a left-wing organization, is holding a counter-conference demanding that the Fed keep interest rates low, print more money, and bail out states and municipalities that are deep in debt. And, of course, the

Fed Decision-Making Plagued by Paralysis and Inaction

Yesterday’s Fed statement is reminiscent of Goldilocks and the Three Bears. The first porridge was too hot, the second too cold. Where was the one that was just right? The Federal Reserve has a similar quandary. It is trying to keep both inflation and unemployment low. But alas, inflation is too low and unemployment is too high. What should it do? Today the Fed answered by prolonging the paralysis and inaction. This dilemma is called ‘discretionary policy.’ It has governed monetary policy for the last 40 years, yet it provides no clear direction to Fed policymakers. There must be a