Central bank independence shifted economic decision-making beyond electoral reach

Evidence

The power of the Fed to manage the economy was considered just as sacred as, and even less partisan than, the Supreme Court’s authority to interpret the law. With the crucial questions of economic policy decided in venues that were largely outside of public view and beyond the reach of elections—and which thereby embodied ‘the continuity of the state’ regardless of electoral outcomes—politics increasingly focused on cultural and civil rights issues within the structure of corporate capitalism. — Clara E. Mattei, Escape from Capitalism, 421

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the hollowing-out of the public sphere argument in Communication as Culture; and to technocratic insulation arguments in Troubling Transparency. — connects to: Central-bank independence was designed to insulate price stability from democratic pressure. — Mark Blyth, Austerity: The History of a Dangerous…, 422; Independent conservative central bankers can credibly commit against inflation where politicians cannot — Mark Blyth, Austerity: The History of a Dangerous…, 423; Central bank independence was formalized to exempt economic policy from democratic control — Clara E. Mattei, The Capital Order: How Economists…, 71 (+7 more)
• SEED: Angles toward an essay about how depoliticizing the economy redirects political energy into cultural issues — the classic ‘culture wars as displacement’ thesis.

Broader Connections

• Central bank independence was designed to insulate deflationary policy from democratic opposition. #corroborates (0.97) — Clara E. Mattei, Escape from Capitalism, 374
• Central bank independence was formalized to exempt economic policy from democratic control #corroborates (0.95) — Clara E. Mattei, The Capital Order, 71
• Independent central banks originated as a way to dodge democratic pressure. #corroborates (0.93) — Clara E. Mattei, Escape from Capitalism, 374
• Central bank technocracy was framed as superior to democratic control precisely in democratic ages #expands (0.90) — Clara E. Mattei, The Capital Order, 1013
• Hawtrey framed central bank independence as expert rule beyond political reach. #exemplifies (0.88) — Clara E. Mattei, The Capital Order, 1010
• Ordoliberalism institutionalized competition policy and an independent central bank against parliamentary control #exemplifies (0.87) — Mark Blyth, Austerity, 364