The author argues that tax cuts and spending increases should come only as dividends of debt reduction, and that an aggressive debt-reduction strategy should be implemented now. He proposes a debt-reduction tax irrevocably directed toward the repayment of the principal of our national debt. As a...

This paper assesses the effects of fiscal consolidations associated with public debt reduction on medium-term output growth during periods of private debt deleveraging. The analysis covers 107 countries and 79 episodes of public debt reduction driven by discretionary fiscal adjustments during...

Consumer debts in the United States can effectively live (and grow) forever: most statutes of limitations do not extinguish them; they can morph into relatives' obligations after the debtor's death; and they sometimes rise from the grave even after they have been paid. All the while, interest...

How do oil price movements affect sovereign spreads in an oil-dependent economy? I develop a stochastic general equilibrium model of an economy exposed to co-moving oil price and output processes, with endogenous sovereign default risk. The model explains a large proportion of business cycle...