The article argues that recent executive overreach and politicization have severely undermined established norms of U.S. civil-military relations. To restore professional standards, the incoming Congress must actively exercise its oversight powers, moving beyond mere criticism to demanding transparency in defense policy and personnel decisions. Key reforms include enforcing meritocratic promotion processes, requiring documented justification for senior officer removals, and preventing the partisan use of the military. These actions are crucial for bolstering public trust and ensuring the military remains a nonpartisan instrument of civilian control.
Fed’s Rate Hike Exposes Lack of Underlying Framework
English Summary
The article argues that the Federal Reserve's recent rate hike decision, while justifiable on inflation grounds, highlights a critical lack of an underlying, transparent policy framework. The core problem is that the Fed's decisions appear discretionary, leading to market uncertainty because the committee's judgment, rather than clear data, dictates policy shifts. The author proposes that the Fed adopt a formal monetary policy rule—an algebraic formula linking the target rate to indicators like inflation and unemployment—to replace subjective guidance. Implementing such a rule would provide market predictability, enhance transparency, and shield the Fed from political attacks by making deviations from the standard easily quantifiable.
中文摘要
本文認為，聯邦準備理事會（Fed）近期決定升息，雖然在抗擊通膨的基礎上具有合理性，但卻凸顯了其缺乏一個底層、透明的政策框架。核心問題在於，聯準會的決策顯得具有自由裁量性，導致市場不確定性，因為政策轉向是基於委員會的判斷，而非明確的數據。作者建議聯準會應採納一套正式的貨幣政策規則——這是一種將目標利率與通膨率、失業率等指標連結的代數公式——以取代主觀指引。實施此類規則將能提供市場可預測性，提升透明度，並透過使偏離標準的行為易於量化，從而保護聯準會免受政治攻擊。
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