Hoisted from the Archives: The U.S. Macroeconomic Situation as of June 18, 2009

Comment for the Economist on Christina Romer (2009), "The Lessons of 1937": Five Lessons from 1937 and Otherwhen:

Let me make five points to eliminate or refute or at least to fight against or lay down a marker that there is--well, call it "confusion" about what the right state of policy for the American macroeconomy should be.

My first point is that over the past six months the economy has been a severe disappointment. Output and employment have fallen much faster than people were...