On the Election Results

I did not support Mr. Trump, but now that he is our President-elect, I wish him well.

To my many friends who are now freaking out, I encourage you to take a deep breath and calm down. Our political and economic system is more robust than you sometimes give it credit for being.

Earlier this year, I wrote:

People often ask me whether it is frustrating to work in Washington, noting how hard it is to get anything done. Yes, in some ways, it is. This episode is only one example where our good policy (as my White House colleagues and I saw it) was subverted by an uncooperative legislature.

            Yet, over time, I have come to appreciate that frustration for those in policy jobs is not a bug in the system but rather a feature. The founding fathers, in their great wisdom, built this tension into the system. In high school civics classes, it goes by the name “checks and balances.” 

A common lament is that there is too much gridlock in Washington, and maybe there is. But imagine that your least favorite candidate wins the next presidential election. Might you be grateful when the new President and his or her CEA chair become frustrated while trying to implement their new ideas for economic policy?