Fed Independence Is an Unconstitutional Myth
by John Tamny of RealClearMarkets In a recent opinion piece on the Federal Reserve for the Wall Street Journal, authors R. Glenn Hubbard, Hal Scott and John Thornton argued that the “Fed must above all maintain its political independence…
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by John Tamny of RealClearMarkets
In a recent opinion piece on the Federal Reserve for the Wall Street Journal, authors R. Glenn Hubbard, Hal Scott and John Thornton argued that the “Fed must above all maintain its political independence in conducting monetary policy.” What the authors missed is that the Fed has never been non-political or independent, nor was it intended to be autonomous.
The Fed is not an independent body free of political coercion, but rather an institution whose actions have long been dictated by the president and politicians in power. More important, since Congress is empowered through the Constitution “To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof,” it’s folly for general defenders of central bank independence to presume that this applies to our own Federal Reserve.
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