Season preview- Trade wars, tradeoffs, and turbulence: Examining economics in the Trump-era
At a time of growing uncertainty about the country’s economic outlook, season three of the Heller-Hurwicz Office Hours Podcast is exploring the policy priorities of the second Trump administration. Tune in this season to hear host Chris Farrell of MPR’s Marketplace discussing some of the most pressing economic issues with leading Minnesota economists.
Embedded at the top of this page is a recording of season three's launch, The end of the free trade Era: Trump’s sledgehammer approach to constructing a new economic order. In the episode, economists Tim Kehoe and Chris Phelan share differing perspectives on how the President’s approach to trade policy is playing out for the United States. "The US economy–and it's been obvious since the pandemic–is the healthiest major economy in the world, and I just am surprised that we're losing that,” cautions Kehoe. “And in losing [our status as] being the healthiest economy, I expect there's a very high chance that in three months, we will look back and know that we were in a recession right at this moment."
The season's second episode, Checks, balances, and political independence- President Trump and the Federal Reserve Bank features former President of the Minneapolis Federal Reserve, Gary Stern, and former Director of Research, Art Rolnick. While President Trump has pushed to have more control of the U.S.' central bank and questions are being raised about public accountability for the institution, Stern explains that "one key job of the Chair of the Board of Governors and chair of the Open Market Committee, and other senior Reserve Bank officials, is to help to explain and build support for the policy the Fed is conducting, because at the end of the day, the Fed can't conduct policies that the public doesn't support."
In episode three, Inflation, tariffs, and lessons learned (and relearned) from history, professor V.V. Chari shares his perspective on post-COVID inflation, monetary policy, and the potential impact of President Trump's approach. "The public hates inflation," says Chari. "And in particular, the public hates the kind of inflation where prices go up, up, up, up–and then even if the inflation rate is falling, that doesn't mean the prices are falling."
In the final episode of the miniseries, The trade war between the U.S. and China: What’s at stake in the decoupling, we hear from Professor–and HHEI Director–Kjetil Storesletten as he shares his perspective on China's approach to navigating changing global trade relationships. "We gain from trade because, on average, we can buy cheaper goods," explains Storesletten, "but if China and the U.S. go separate ways, the whole world is going to grow slower, because we have to invent everything twice."
Although there are no easy answers to policy debates of our present moment, season three of the Office Hours Podcast presents an economic lens through which to view the potential impact of the Trump administration’s policy initiatives.
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