Brian Romanchuk — Book Review: Freedom from National Debt by Frank Newman

The book "Freedom from National Debt" by Frank N. Newman, was published in 2013, and is an introduction to fiscal policy. Frank N. Newman worked as a bank executive and was the number two official at the US Treasury. In the book, he explains why worries about US government debt are largely unfounded. The material is familiar ground for those who follow Modern Monetary Theory (MMT) but the book is presented without too much theoretical baggage.

Bond Economics
Book Review: Freedom from National Debt
Brian Romanchuk

Stephanie Kelton — Former Dept. Secretary of the U.S. Treasury Says Critics of MMT are “Reaching”

A few weeks ago, I had a lengthy e-mail exchange with Frank N. Newman, former Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Treasury. Frank’s books (here and here) are so closely aligned with MMT thinking about deficits, debt, monetary operations, etc. that I wanted to get his thoughts on one of the most common criticisms of MMT. MMT recognizes that the currency itself is a simple public monopoly and that the issuer of the currency must spend (or lend) it into existence, before it can be used to pay taxes or buy bonds. The implication? Governments that issue sovereign money are not revenue constrained. Critics have argued that MMT has this all wrong because the system requires the government to have numbers on its balance sheet before it can spend — i.e. the government is not allowed to run an overdraft and is, therefore, constrained by cash on hand. Here’s what Frank Newman thinks of that critique:

New Economic Perspectives
Former Dept. Secretary of the U.S. Treasury Says Critics of MMT are “Reaching”
Stephanie Kelton| Associate Professor of Economics, UMKC

Let's bury that one.

Tschäff Reisberg — Best of Frank Newman's Freedom from National Debt

Some short excepts.

This Episode of Life
Best of Frank Newman's Freedom from National Debt
Tschäff Reisberg

Frank N. Newman, CEO of major banks in the U.S. and China, and former Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Treasury, is the author of Six Myths that Hold Back America: And What America Can Learn from the Growth of China's Economy and Freedom from National Debt.