HKS Affiliated Authors
Excerpt
August 18, 2022, Audio: "Larry Summers is one of the most important economists in the world. He’s been the chief economist at the World Bank. He was Treasury Secretary under President Clinton. He was director of the National Economic Council under Obama. And from 2001 to 2006, he was president of Harvard. But perhaps more than anything on his resume, Summers is most well-known for his willingness to speak his mind—even if it means being the skunk at the garden party. That’s exactly what he’s been for the past few years, as he’s warned about inflation and criticized the Biden administration’s spending policies. So why has the Biden administration invited the skunk inside? Summers, it turns out, has been a key force behind the scenes on the Inflation Reduction Act—the massive climate, health, and tax bill signed into law by President Biden this week. He also reportedly worked to get Joe Manchin—who earlier this summer said he would not vote for the bill—to reverse course. Today, on Honestly, I spoke to Larry Summers. We talked about the state of the economy and whether or not the new law will actually reduce inflation. He also sounds off on the future of higher education and what he calls “the new McCarthyism." Listen Via Spotify
HKS Faculty Author - Lawrence H. Summers