Allan H. Meltzer

Distinguished Visiting Fellow
Biography: 

Allan Meltzer passed away on May 8, 2017.

Allan Meltzer was a distinguished visiting fellow at the Hoover Institution and the Allan H. Meltzer University Professor of Political Economy at the Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon University. He was a visiting professor at Harvard, the University of Chicago, the University of Rochester, the Yugoslav Institute for Economic Research, the Austrian Institute for Advanced Study, the Getulio Vargas Foundation in Rio de Janeiro, and the City University, London. He served as a consultant for several congressional committees, the President's Council of Economic Advisers, the US Treasury Department, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the World Bank, foreign governments, and central banks. He was a member of the President's Economic Policy Advisory Board. In 1988–89, he was an acting member of the President's Council of Economic Advisers. From 1986 to 2002, he was an honorary adviser to the Institute for Monetary and Economic Studies of the Bank of Japan.

In 1999–2000, he served as chairman of the International Financial Institution Advisory Commission, known as the Meltzer Commission, which proposed major reforms of the International Monetary Fund and the development banks.

Professor Meltzer's writings appeared in numerous journals; his most recent publication was Why Capitalism? (Oxford University Press, 2012). He authored several other books, including A History of the Federal Reserve (University of Chicago Press, 2 volumes, 2003 and 2009) and numerous papers on economic theory and policy. His career included experience as a self-employed businessman, management adviser, and consultant to banks and financial institutions.

In 1983, Professor Meltzer received a medal for distinguished professional achievement from the University of California, Los Angeles. He was named the distinguished fellow for 2011 by the American Council for Capital Formation and is a distinguished fellow of the American Economic Association. In 2003 he received the Irving Kristol Award from the American Enterprise Institute and the Adam Smith Award from the National Association for Business Economics. In 2009, he received the Distinguished Teacher Award from the International Mensa Foundation. In 2011 Professor Meltzer received the Bradley Award, the Harry Truman Medal for Public Policy, and the Truman Medal for Economic Policy.

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Analysis and Commentary

A Better Strategy for Faster Growth

by George P. Shultz, Gary S. Becker, Michael J. Boskin, John F. Cogan, Allan H. Meltzer, John B. Taylorvia Wall Street Journal
Sunday, March 24, 2013

Washington has become a city of tactics, obsessed with finger pointing, fear mongering and political spin. These maneuvers—designed for temporary political or personal gain—have produced incoherent policies and left the nation's pressing problems unaddressed.

 

Start Now

by George P. Shultz, Michael J. Boskin, John F. Cogan, Allan H. Meltzer, John B. Taylorvia Analysis
Friday, January 25, 2013

This should be the president’s overwhelming top priority: deal with the looming debt. By George P. Shultz, Michael J. Boskin, John F. Cogan, Allan H. Meltzer, and John B. Taylor.

Economics Abstract
Analysis and Commentary

The Magnitude of the Mess We're In

by George P. Shultz, John B. Taylor, Michael J. Boskin, John F. Cogan, Allan H. Meltzervia Wall Street Journal
Sunday, September 16, 2012

Sometimes a few facts tell important stories. The American economy now is full of facts that tell stories that you really don't want, but need, to hear.

 

Where are we now?

 

Analysis and Commentary

What's Wrong With the Federal Reserve?

by Allan H. Meltzervia Wall Street Journal
Tuesday, July 10, 2012

By allowing its monetary policy to be influenced by elected politicians and market speculators, the Federal Reserve is putting its independence at risk. It is also neglecting basic economics, which was a great strength of its current chairman, Ben Bernanke.

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Why Capitalism?

by Allan H. Meltzervia Defining Ideas
Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Because it’s the only system that maximizes growth and personal freedom.

Analysis and Commentary

Banks Need More Capital, Not More Rules

by Allan H. Meltzervia Wall Street Journal
Thursday, May 17, 2012

The U.S. economy can't grow unless investors are free to finance risky assets...

Analysis and Commentary

A Look at the Global One Percent

by Allan H. Meltzervia Wall Street Journal
Friday, March 9, 2012

The remarkable similarity in income distribution across countries over the past century means domestic policy has less effect than many believe on who gets what...

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Why Capitalism?

by Allan H. Meltzervia Oxford University Press
Monday, February 20, 2012

A review of the headlines of the past decade seems to show that disasters are often part of capitalist systems: the high-tech bubble, the Enron fraud, the Madoff Ponzi scheme, the great housing bubble, massive lay-offs, and a widening income gap. 

Four Reasons Keynesians Keep Getting It Wrong

by Allan H. Meltzervia Advancing a Free Society
Friday, October 28, 2011

Those who heaped high praise on Keynesian policies have grown silent as government spending has failed to bring an economic recovery.

Analysis and Commentary

Four Reasons Keynesians Keep Getting It Wrong

by Allan H. Meltzervia Wall Street Journal
Friday, October 28, 2011

Concern over future tax rates is one of the main reasons for reduced investor confidence...

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