By William K. Black
May 8, 2016 Kansas City, MO
N. Gregory Mankiw writes leading textbooks in economics that present neoliberal economic nostrums as economic “principles.” Mankiw wrote a column in the New York Times entitled “The Economy Is Rigged, and Other Presidential Campaign Myths.” The title reflects the central nature of his attack on Bernie Sanders explaining how the economy is rigged in favor of elite bank fraudsters. This first column in a series responds to Mankiw’s myths about the rigged financial system. The next column deals with Mankiw’s myths about the trade deals.
Mankiw misfires immediately because he does not even attempt to refute Bernie’s explanations of how finance is rigged. Instead, Mankiw conflates income inequality and the rigging of finance.