Bill Clinton provided the blueprint for controlling the debt and deficit three decades ago.
Robert J. Shapiro
Follow Robert on Twitter @robshapiro. Robert J. Shapiro, a Washington Monthly contributing writer, is the chairman of Sonecon and a Senior Fellow at the McDonough School of Business at Georgetown University. He previously served as Under Secretary of Commerce for Economic Affairs under Bill Clinton and advised senior members of the Obama administration on economic policy.
Posted inPolitics
A Unified Theory of Donald Trump’s Presidency
Past presidents have tapped their unarticulated prerogative powers in times of necessity and for the national good. For Trump, it’s a permission slip to do as he will.
Posted inPolitics
White House Correspondents’ Dinner Aftermath: Many Americans Entertain the Idea of Violence
Surveys show that large swaths of Americans, across parties and political beliefs, accept and even endorse political violence.
Posted inEconomy
Trump’s Dangerous Tariff Addiction
Despite the Supreme Court rebuke, his compulsion to tax imports is unabated and poses large-scale risks for the economy.
Posted inPolitics
Hannah Arendt Understood the Forces Behind Donald Trump
The late scholar of mass movements, charismatic leaders, and government violence foreshadowed the president’s rise and the MAGA movement in The Origins of Totalitarianism. Recent polling proves her prescience.
Posted inEconomy
Affordability: How Trump Has Made It Worse
Solving the affordability crisis won’t be easy but reversing some key MAGA policies would be a start.
Posted inFeatured
The Shutdown Is Only the First Battle in the War Over Trump’s 2026 Budget
Both the shutdown and Trump’s grim budget will hurt the economy.
Posted inLaw and Justice
The Lies Behind Trump’s D.C. Troop Surge
Past presidents called out troops to defend the capital from invasion and insurrection. Trump does so to intimidate political opposition.
Posted inEconomy
The U.S. Economy Is Stumbling Badly
Don’t get distracted by the recent 3 percent GDP number. A former top Commerce Department official explains why the economic outlook is grim.
Posted inEconomy
Trump’s Budget Could Break the Economy
For once, the deficit hawks are right. The tax cuts for the wealthy in the Republican budget could cause the third economic meltdown this century. Unlike the Financial Crisis and the pandemic, we couldn’t spend our way out.
