LATEST
Waiting For The Fed's Next Apology (8/14/09)
Johnson explains why an apology, or at least a statement of responsibility, from is necessary from Ben Bernanke and the Fed.
From the Jaws of Defeat
How, against all the odds, Obama could make the G20 worthwhile. (3/30/09)
The IMF Matters
And the decision to fund it appropriately is the most important one in the world next week. (3/28/09)
Bust the Slump First
The president spelled out impressive proposals for the environment, health care, and education on Tuesday night. But they didn't strike at the heart of our most pressing economic problems. (2/29/09)
Insufficient Boldness
Obama's housing plan is comprehensive, but not aggressive. (2/19/09)
BLOG POSTS
Waiting For The Fed's Next Apology (8/14/09)
Johnson explains why an apology, or at least a statement of responsibility, from is necessary from Ben Bernanke and the Fed.
The Real Reason China Will Surpass Us (8/11/09)
Johnson explains how China's productivity and rent-seeking are the keys to their economic success.
The Dark Side Of Behavioral Economics (7/29/09)
Richard Posner and traditional Chicago economics interpreted the proposed new Consumer Financial Protection Agency wrong.
Who's Afraid Of Consumer Financial Protection? (7/28/09)
A Consumer Financial Protection Agency is necessary to the health of the system--so what's the hold-up?
Secretary Geithner’s China Strategy: A Viewer’s Guide (7/27/09)
Why it's risky to be deferential to China when it comes to currency.
Obama's Tepid Support For The Consumer Protection Agency (7/13/09)
Why Obama isn't pushing the idea of a new consumer protection agency hard enough.
The Case Against The G8 (7/8/09)
Why it should be the G20, not G8.
Did Bank Lobbyists Write Obama's Reform Proposal? (6/18/09)
Why Obama's regulatory reform proposal looks so weak.
What To Think About Obama's Regulatory Reforms? (6/17/09)
The upcoming fight between Geithner/Summers and the real reformers.
The G8: Still Masters of the Universe, But on Which Planet? (6/10/09)
What we should hope for from this weekend's conference.
Obama Is Making A Big Mistake In Saudi Arabia (6/2/09)
If we continue to borrow oil money, we are asking for trouble.
Is China Taking Tim Geithner To The Cleaners? (6/1/09)
Is Geithner trying to persuade China to reflate our bubble?
Why The Stress Test Leaks Have Been So Confusing (5/6/09)
How to see through the banks' PR.
What Treasury Needs Is A Distraction (5/5/09)
Who's running the show? The banks or the Treasury?
Bring In The Antitrust Division (On Banking) (4/16/09)
The Department of Justice needs to step in and investigate the banks.
Banker’s Delight (3/24/09)
The Geithner Plan is long on spin, short on specifics. Here's what a comprehensive rescue package should include.
Whistling Past the Graveyard (3/16/09)
The G20's final proposals were short-sighted, deluded, and just plain bad.
The Slightest Glimmer (3/8/09)
Amid the economic crisis, there are still reasons to hope.
VIDEO
TNRtv: What Obama Must Do To Pass Regulatory Reform (8/13/09)
Johnson argues that if Obama does not sell his plan to overhaul financial regulations to the public, all of our futures will be at risk.
TNRtv: Should Geithner Have Told Regulators To F*ck Off? (8/05/09)
Johnson offers support for Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner's expletive-laden outburst against financial regulators, arguing that their selfish opposition to Obama's plan is putting us all at risk.
TNRtv: How To Deal With Thieving Mortgage Lenders (7/30/09)
Why mortgage servicing companies are still making money off of struggling homeowners, and what--if anything--we can do about it.
TNRtv: Why Billions More Are Going Into The Automobile Industry (7/23/09)
Johnson breaks down the federal government's announcement that it will take over the pension plans of the Delphi Corporation, arguing that unfortunately, there's little else the government can do.
TNRtv: Will Geithner Burn Small Businesses? (7/15/09)
Johnson argues that the government's handling of CIT, one of the country's biggest lenders to small companies, will speak volumes about which financial institutions have the ear of the Treasury.
TNRtv: Why We Should Consider Bankruptcy For Big Banks (7/13/09)
Johnson commends the court system for its surprisingly smooth and efficient reorganization of General Motors--and suggests that we may want to put some of our biggest banks through the same process.
TNRtv: Geithner's Latest Multi-Billion Dollar Gift to Banks (6/29/09)
Johnson breaks down the rules announced by the Obama administration for pricing the stock options that banks must buy back from the government to exit the bailout program, warning of an impending political backlash.
TNRtv: Obama's Futile Plan for Financial Regulations (6/16/09)
Obama's proposal to overhaul financial regulations is "unsatisfactory" and "will not do enough to protect the financial system."
TNRtv: Obama's Misguided Plan to Limit Bank Bonuses (6/8/09)
Johnson argues that the Obama administration's plan to regulate executive compensation does not pair the toughest regulations with the banks that need them most.
TNRtv: The Government Says It Wants To Be Hands-Off With GM. Yeah, Right. (6/1/09)
Johnson commends the Obama administration's GM bankruptcy plan, but warns that it will be difficult for the government to provide autonomy.
TNRtv: How a Stimulus Could Torpedo Health Care Reform (5/11/09)
If Obama continues to prioritize fiscal stimulus over recapitalizing the banks, he will put health care and other costly reforms at risk.
TNRtv: Is Obama Finally Governing the Banks? (5/6/09)
The results of Bank of America's stress test seem to imply that the government is finally pushing back against the big banks--the ones without political connections, anyway.
TNRtv: A Fatal Economic Flaw that Summers Won't Discuss (4/27/09)
Larry Summers is overlooking the key to reforming our financial system.
TNRtv: Obama's Futile Bank Plan (4/20/09)
Johnson argues that Obama's latest plan to raise capital for the banks isn't worth the paper it's printed on.
TNRtv: Signs of Economic Recovery (4/14/09)
Johnson breaks down Goldman Sachs's plan to raise capital and sever ties to the government. Is this a turning point for the U.S. economy?
TNRtv: The Biggest Gamble by a Fed Chair in Decades (4/6/09)
Johnson argues that Ben Bernanke's plan to print hundreds of billions of dollars may hurl us into a period of runaway inflation--and that it's the best strategy we've got.
TNRtv: In With China, Out With Europe (3/30/09)
Johnson explains why China should be fairly represented at the IMF, and why the overrepresentation of Europeans should come to an end.
TNRtv: No More Bailouts From Congress, What Now? (3/18/09)
Johnson argues that the controversy over AIG bonuses has endangered the U.S. economy by squashing all hopes of Congress passing another bailout.
BIOGRAPHY
Simon Johnson is the Ronald A. Kurtz (1954) Professor of Entrepreneurship at MIT's Sloan School of Management. He is also a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics in Washington, D.C., a co-founder of BaselineScenario.com, a widely cited website on the global economy, and is a member of the Congressional Budget Office's Panel of Economic Advisers. Mr. Johnson appears regularly on NPR's Planet Money podcast in the Economist House Calls feature, is a weekly contributor to NYT.com's Economix, and has a video blog feature on The New Republic's website. He is co-director of the NBER project on Africa and President of the Association for Comparative Economic Studies (term of office 2008-2009).
Professor Johnson is an expert on financial and economic crises. As an academic, in policy roles, and with the private sector, over the past 20 years he has worked on crisis prevention, macroeconomic damage limitation and growth recoveries around the world. His research continues to focus on how policymakers can limit the impact of negative shocks and manage the risks faced by their countries. From March 2007 through the end of August 2008, Professor Johnson was the International Monetary Fund's economic counselor (chief economist) and director of its research department.
By Simon Johnson