Experts in the News

While the Federal Reserve maintains that now is not the time to worry about the debt from coronavirus relief packages, “I don’t think we can just wish it away,” said public finance fellow Jorge Barro. “It’s not just going disappear on its own. At some point, we’re going to have to raise taxes or make some painful spending cuts to balance the budget. And when that time comes, there are going to be costs associated with it.”

"We are doing it ahead of when the models say we can do it safely," in June, said fellow Peter Hotez of plans to partially reopen Texas on Friday.

Featured guest Ken Medlock, senior director of the Center for Energy Studies, discussed the state of the energy industry.

Paying off the trillions in fiscal stimulus "will require distortionary taxes or spending reductions that should be included as costs associated with the quarantine,” says public finance fellow Jorge Barro.

Energy fellow Jim Krane talks about the collapse of oil futures, what happened to demand, and how problems in the energy sector affect the larger economy.