Plans to Reduce the Fed's Asset Holdings: Doesn't Anyone Care About the Budget Deficit?

June 13, 2017

Apparently, at least no one at the New York Times cares about the budget deficit. An article that reported on the Fed’s plans to reduce its holdings of assets never once mentioned the implication for the budget deficit. Currently the Fed is refunding close to $100 billion a year to the Treasury based on the earnings from these assets. If its holdings were to drop to pre-crisis levels, measured as a share of GDP, this amount would fall to around $30–$40 billion. The difference could be close to $600 billion in revenue over the course of a decade (enough to fund the rich people’s tax cut under the Republican health care plan), but apparently the NYT didn’t think it was worth mentioning.

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