Word: feldstein
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Harvard colleagues of Professor of Economics Martin S. Feldstein '62 last week said recent criticism of the chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors was politically motivated...
...Martin Feldstein, the President's chief economic adviser, fears a "lopsided recovery that would be slower paced and more fragile than a balanced recovery." Other Administration officials, however, have repeatedly brushed aside Feldstein's concerns. Says Treasury Secretary Donald Regan: "I wish economists would sit back and relax. [This will be] one of the greatest recoveries in history...
...Feldstein insists that there is little truth to all the stories. In an interview with TIME last week, he said that changes in the two speeches were minor and that the canceled address will be rewritten and given later. Further, he notes that his compliance with a well-publicized White House order that his speeches be reviewed before delivery is voluntary. Asked about reports of his imminent resignation, Feldstein combatively replied: "I know there are people who would be happy to see me back in Cambridge. I'm not going to give them the satisfaction. The President...
...Feldstein's leading antagonist within the Administration has been Treasury Secretary Donald Regan, cheerleader of the "deficits don't matter" school of economic thought. Regan strongly opposes increasing taxes in order to bring down the deficit. While that view has few adherents in the business or academic world, it has many advocates in the White House. The notion of a tax increase before next year's election is anathema to Reagan's political advisers...
...addition to pushing unpopular programs, Feldstein has undermined his credibility with a series of inaccurate economic forecasts. Last January he projected that business would grow only 3.1% this year. That low forecast earned him the nickname "Dr. Gloom." He has since revised that figure an embarrassing four times, and now predicts that the G.N.P. will increase 6% to 6.5% this year. Says one White House observer: "This record reinforces Reagan's tendency to disregard the doomsaying of economists generally and to follow his instincts instead...