JD Vance: “The political leadership of this country should have a greater say on the monetary policy of the United States”

My transcription of JD Vance’s statement re: the Fed, on “State of the Union”, interviewed by Dana Bash today. Might’ve gotten a few words wrong, but got the essence I think.

(with apologies to the ProjectSyndicate graphic artist).

JD Vance agreed with Trump’s policy position, characterizing it as “profound”. I outsource commentary on this policy prescription to Maury Obstfeld at PS :

Trump’s advisers are reportedly considering two complementary policy changes. One proposal reportedly involves increasing direct presidential control over the Fed’s interest-rate decisions and rulemaking. Simultaneously, Trump’s trade team, led by former US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, apparently wants to weaken the dollar’s exchange rate.

While some Trump advisers have denied any plans to devalue the dollar, Trump’s preference for lower interest rates and a weaker currency was evident during his first term. The proposed policies would make it easier for him to override the Fed’s independence and achieve both objectives. The result would be a potent inflationary cocktail.

Trump’s desire for a weaker dollar is driven by his belief, shared by Lighthizer, that the dollar is “too strong.”

See also here, for central bank independence in a Trump-Vance administration.

 

 

25 thoughts on “JD Vance: “The political leadership of this country should have a greater say on the monetary policy of the United States”

  1. pgl

    Wait – I thought Stephen Moore wanted a stronger dollar, a “sound” monetary policy which in practice means going back to the gold standard. And Trump want this clown to be on the FED? I’m sorry but Trump and Vance has no effing idea what they are babbling about.

    1. baffling

      and how does vance and trump feel about president kamala harris controlling the fed and interest rates? are they ok with that?

  2. Anonymous

    What the constitutions says about setting the value of currency?

    Nothing about federal reserve in the constitution or amendments.

    Jackson and Biddle.

    1. pgl

      The dumbest troll ever pretends he’s an expert on the Constitution? Hey moron – this blog covered this already. I guess you were too stupid to ge the discussion. So try this moron:

      https://scholarship.law.nd.edu/ndlr/vol96/iss1/1/
      Christine Kexel Chabot, Is the Federal Reserve Constitutional? An Originalist Argument for Independent Agencies, 96 Notre Dame L. Rev. 1 (2020).

      Abstract
      Originalists have written off the Federal Reserve’s independent monetary policy decisions as an unconstitutional novelty. This Article demonstrates that the independent structure of the Federal Reserve dates back to a Founding-era agency known as the Sinking Fund Commission. Like the Federal Reserve, the Commission conducted open market purchases of U.S. securities with substantial independence from the President. The Commission’s independent structure was proposed by Alexander Hamilton, passed by the First Congress, and signed into law by President George Washington. Their decisions to create an independent Commission with multiple members to check the President and one another—and to include the Vice President and Chief Justice as Commissioners who could not be replaced or removed by the President—belie the notion that such independence violated the newly minted Constitution. The Sinking Fund Commission establishes that the Federal Reserve’s independent structure has an impeccable originalist provenance and does not violate the Constitution.

      1. Anonymous

        Article and section?

        Why do I care of the debates before and after ratification?

        Half the answer.

        1. pgl

          Lord you are a moron. The link provides the entire paper. READ it troll. And why do we care what you think. You are nothing more than a worthless little troll.

    2. Macroduck

      What the Constitution says is that Congress passes laws and the president is bound by them. Congress created the Federal Reserve. The chair and governors are nominated by the president, confirmed by the Senate, under law. Presidents have no other authority over the Fed.

      So if Congress legislates a change to allow presidents more authority over monetary policy, that will be the law of the land. If a power-hungry president and his morally flexible vice president demand authority over monetary policy, but Congress refuses, the power- hungry president gets squat.

      1. pgl

        Gee – the Constitution never mentions the FBI the SEC or the EPA. Oh wait – Project 2025 wants to get rid of them too. MAGA!

      2. baffling

        see, this is a benign and useful comment. educating others on the big picture. and at the same time, serves as a wonderfully powerful slap down of a stooopid comment by anonymous, who is probably very susceptible to all those conspiracy theories out there. well done sir.

  3. joseph

    Trump isn’t quite sure. Back in 2017 he called up National Security Advisor (and fellow convicted felon) Michael Flynn at 3 AM to ask if a stronger or weaker dollar was better for the US economy. What!?

    As for most things he doesn’t understand, which is pretty much everything, he agrees with whoever he talked to last.

  4. pgl

    The Political Business Cycle
    William D. Nordhaus
    The Review of Economic Studies
    Vol. 42, No. 2 (Apr., 1975)
    https://www.jstor.org/stable/2296528

    Whenever Trump goes on about this – I am reminded of Bill Nordhaus’s old paper. Now one might dismiss this theory as only applying the Richard Nixon and the FED back in 1972. But there in lies the point. Nixon was somewhat corrupt. Trump is uber-corrupt. If Trump became President and could set monetary policy, he would engineer a recession in his first year followed by a massive overstimulation of the economy before the next election. What could go wrong?

  5. pgl

    https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/vance-says-democrats-are-engaging-in-schoolyard-bully-attacks/ar-AA1oBM2l?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531&cvid=9a1a358691a34210831d2e4544d95fed&ei=6
    https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/vance-says-democrats-are-engaging-in-schoolyard-bully-attacks/ar-AA1oBM2l?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531&cvid=9a1a358691a34210831d2e4544d95fed&ei=6

    Poor little BABY! Someone is being MEAN to little JD.

    No – this is total two faced trash. Like Vance’s dishonest and dishonorable Swift Boat II is addressing the needs to the people and being totally fair? Like every damn word out of Trump’s mouth isn’t a racist insult?

    Look – Vance is more than weird. He’s dishonest and incredibly dumb. Sort of reminds of us of Bruce Hall.

    1. baffling

      apparently you need to get trump’s approval to be black. and you need vance’s approval to be considered a soldier.

      1. pgl

        Gotta love the two macho men – Little Lindsey Graham whose only military service was being a lawyer and Little JD Vance who was nothing more than a public relations person. Neither carried a gun or went into combat.

  6. pgl

    Trump’s Plans for the Fed Would Revive 1970s-Style Inflation

    I may think this title is spot on. But I bet JD Vance is working on a press conference where he calls Maurice MEAN for this title and article. After all – JD will reinvent what he and Trump have said just so he can claim Maurice is misrepresenting what they have said on this topic.

    Seriously – doesn’t JD remind you of the worst of the internet trolls?

    1. baffling

      just let vance get in front of the tv as often as possible. he will even grate on the most hardened maga fool. he talks down to everybody. so full of himself. the gift that keeps on giving.

  7. Not Trampis

    would not the law have to be changed for the Fed to lose its independence. In that unlikely development then the $US would fall dramatically.

    1. pgl

      It would normally. But nothing surprises me in light of how the right wing has high jacked the Supreme Court.

  8. James

    This same JD Vance wants to crash the U.S. economy with mass deportation of up to 20 million workers – https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/jd-vance-mass-deportations-start-1-million-defends/story?id=112739447
    Meanwhile under Biden and Harris Illegal crossings at U.S.-Mexico border have fallen to a 3-year low – https://www.cbsnews.com/news/border-crossings-us-mexico-border-june-2024/
    Also undocumented immigrants in US pay nearly $100 billion in taxes – so thank you immigrants for contributing $26 billion to Social Security and $6 billion to Medicare – that they are mostly barred from using – https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-07-30/undocumented-immigrants-in-us-paid-nearly-100-billion-in-taxes
    Also – stop with the fear mongering Trump and Vance! = New data shows violent crime dropping sharply in major U.S. cities – as Biden says “”Americans are safer today than when Vice President Harris and I took office,” Biden said, “”I will continue to urge Congress to fund 100,000 additional police officers and crime prevention and community violence intervention programs, and make commonsense gun safety reforms such as a ban on assault weapons.”
    https://www.axios.com/2024/08/12/violent-crime-harris-trump-election
    It is criminal that the GOP put up Trump and Vance to run the country – I would not trust them to properly clean my bathroom let alone be making decision about U.S. monetary policy.

    1. baffling

      i checked that 10 commandments thing that louisiana placed in the classroom. their version is the 9 commandments (must have been a budget cut thingy). it says nothing about though shalt not lie. thank god. or some folks on the right were headed straight to hell with their repeated violations of a very important document.
      i think there is an amendment on the floor to eliminate another couple of those items (thou shalt not covet thy neighbors wife comes to mind) at the urging of a few vip republicans as well. gotta keep the evangelicals in the good graces, you know.

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