American Economic Policy in the 1990s
Jeffrey A. Frankel, Peter R. Orszag
The MIT Press
The 1990s saw the best economic performance in the United States in three                  decades. Strong economic growth and falling unemployment were accompanied by low                  inflation and rising budget surpluses. Although personal bankruptcies climbed, the                  personal saving rate fell, and the trade deficit expanded, overall, U.S. economic                  performance during the 1990s was outstanding.This book is a unique attempt to write                  the first history of the making of American economic policy during the 1990s. One                  way to view it is as a "debriefing" of those who made the decisions. Each chapter is                  devoted to a particular area of economic policy and consists of a background paper                  written by leading academic economists together with short essays by prominent                  policymakers, many of whom served in the Clinton administration or previous                  administrations, and by independent observers. The questions asked about each policy                  area include: What were the pros and cons of alternative options under                  consideration? What decision was made? What were the relevant economic arguments for                  that decision, and what political interests were served? Were other options missing                  from consideration? Is it possible to judge whether the decision was the right one?                  Are there lessons for the future?