First published 2009
Economic policy transforms people in unexpected ways. Bruce Bartlett helped create Reaganomics as a domestic policy advisor to Ronald Reagan. He championed supply-side economics for decades alongside conservative allies. Now Bartlett faces a crisis of faith in his own theories. He discovers that economic policies lose their power when circumstances change. Valid theories become invalid when applied at the wrong time or place. Bartlett examines historical evidence that challenges everything he once believed. He builds a case for large tax increases, the very policy he once opposed. His journey forces him to choose between loyalty to conservative dogma and loyalty to economic truth. The book follows his struggle to find a new path forward for America's economy, even if it means betraying his former beliefs.
Genres: american, politics, economics, non-fiction, 21st-century, academic
Vibes: intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: crisis-of-faith, ideological-shift
Period: 20th-century, 21st-century
272 pages · Hardcover · St. Martin's Press