My Blogs

From the time I could vote (1964) I have indevoured to evaluate each president’s policies on their merits (as seem by me of course). Thus, at one time or another I have praised or criticize policies of LBJ, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan (my favorite president), George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W Bush, Joe Biden, and Donald Trump. I often condemned a policy but not the President promoting it, in the belief that each President thought his policy was for the welfare of our country even if I disagreed. The exception is Donald Trump. 

Unique in my lifetime, we have a President whose primary interest is in seeing his name on things (Kennedy Center, Peace Institute, maybe Dulles Airport), filling the White House with gold to look like a palace, being praised by strong men (Putin, Orban, Mohammed bin Salman), dropping bombs where ever he chooses (having given up begging for the Nobel Peace Prize) and throwing his weight around (bullying), irrespective of the considerable damaging he is doing to our country. Now he wants his name on US currency (not to mention his likeness on gold coins).

Since 1861 the US treasurer’s signature has appeared on bank notes, along with the likeness of a deceased President.  In 1866, Congress passed what is commonly called the Thayer Amendment, which forbids the likeness of any living person from appearing on U.S. securities and currency. “Donald Trump is set to become the first sitting US president to have his signature on US banknotes, the treasury department has announced…. Trump’s signature will appear alongside Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, an unprecedented move that the department said would mark America’s 250th anniversary…. The first $100 bills with the signatures of Trump and Bessent will be printed in June, with others to follow.  Notes currently being printed bear the signatures of former President Joe Biden’s Treasury Secretary, Janet Yellen, and Treasurer Lynn Malerba.” Just in case you didn’t know that we have a Treasurer in addition to the Secretary of the Treasury https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cz0el909yp3o  

Trump is an egoist with the tastes and desires of a spoiled child. Unfortunately, as President of the United States his childish behavior is doing great damage to the U.S. and global order.

Unknown's avatar

Author: Warren Coats

I specialize in advising central banks on monetary policy and the development of the capacity to formulate and implement monetary policy.  I joined the International Monetary Fund in 1975 from which I retired in 2003 as Assistant Director of the Monetary and Financial Systems Department. While at the IMF I led or participated in missions to the central banks of over twenty countries (including Afghanistan, Bosnia, Croatia, Egypt, Iraq, Israel, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kosovo, Kyrgystan, Moldova, Serbia, Turkey, West Bank and Gaza Strip, and Zimbabwe) and was seconded as a visiting economist to the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (1979-80), and to the World Bank's World Development Report team in 1989.  After retirement from the IMF I was a member of the Board of the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority from 2003-10 and of the editorial board of the Cayman Financial Review from 2010-2017.  Prior to joining the IMF I was Assistant Prof of Economics at UVa from 1970-75.  I am currently a fellow of Johns Hopkins Krieger School of Arts and Sciences, Institute for Applied Economics, Global Health, and the Study of Business Enterprise.  In March 2019 Central Banking Journal awarded me for my “Outstanding Contribution for Capacity Building.”  My recent books are One Currency for Bosnia: Creating the Central Bank of Bosnia and Herzegovina; My Travels in the Former Soviet Union; My Travels to Afghanistan; My Travels to Jerusalem; and My Travels to Baghdad. I have a BA in Economics from the UC Berkeley and a PhD in Economics from the University of Chicago. My dissertation committee was chaired by Milton Friedman and included Robert J. Gordon. I live in National Landing Va 22202

Leave a comment