Garett Jones

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Garett Jones

  • BB&T Professor for the Study of Capitalism, Mercatus Center
  • Assistant Professor of Economics, George Mason University

Garett Jones is BB&T Professor for the Study of Capitalism at the Mercatus Center and Assistant Professor of Economics at George Mason University. His research interests include macroeconomics, monetary economics, and the microfoundations of economic growth.  Recently, he has begun experimental research into the causes of informal cooperation, a key driver of good institutions.  His work has appeared in journals such as the Journal of Monetary Economics and the Journal of Economic Growth.   

In addition to his academic work, Dr. Jones has also served as Economic Policy Adviser to Senator Orrin Hatch and as a staff economist to the Joint Economic Committee of the U.S. Congress.  While on Capitol Hill he worked on tax and labor issues.  

Dr. Jones is a frequent speaker at Mercatus's Capitol Hill Campus series, and recent media include Wisconsin Public Radio, CNN.com, and Fortune.com.  

Prior to earning his PhD in economics from the University of California, San Diego, Dr. Jones earned a BA in history from Brigham Young University, a Master of Public Administration degree from Cornell and an MA in political science from UC Berkeley.

WORKING PAPERS

Speed Bankruptcy: A Firewall to Future Crises

Garett Jones, Benjamin Kwesi Klutsey, Katelyn Christ | Jan 10, 2010
In light of the 2007-2008 financial crisis, policymakers are reforming financial regulations in order to create a resolution system for large failing financial institutions. This paper advocates that speed bankruptcy, specifically overnight debt-to-equity conversions be considered as a viable option to recapitalize troubled financial institutions. At the very least, overnight debt-to-equity conversions could have been used to provide hundreds of billions of dollars of extra equity to weak firms in 2008, and could still be used the next time a firm that is ostensibly “too big to fail” comes close to going bust.

POLICY BRIEFS

Speed Bankruptcy as the TARP Alternative image

Speed Bankruptcy as the TARP Alternative

Garett Jones, Benjamin Kwesi Klutsey, Katelyn Christ | Feb 03, 2010
Policymakers continue to seek viable alternatives to resolve large insolvent financial institutions. A better option is speed bankruptcy: a process of converting some long-term debt into equity, a more palatable option than using taxpayer funds to recapitalize large banks.
Will the Stimulus Bill Crowd Out Good Economics? image

Will the Stimulus Bill Crowd Out Good Economics?

Garett Jones, Veronique de Rugy | Sep 2009
On February 13, 2009, President Obama signed into law the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), with the promise that this $787 billion stimulus would “create or save” 3.5 million jobs over the next two years, mostly in the private sector. The basis for the law was a study by Christina Romer, the Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors, and Vice-President Biden’s chief economist Jared Bernstein, who warned that without an economic stimulus, unemployment would reach 9 percent by the end of 2010.

MEDIA CLIPPINGS

The Washington Post

Obama’s Push on Jobs and the Deficit

Garett Jones | Dec 08, 2009
Garett Jones is quoted in the Washington Post regarding the Obama administration’s push on jobs and deficit.
Wisconsin Public Radio - At Issue with Ben Merens

At Issue with Ben Merens, Wednesday, March 18, 2009 at 4:00 PM

Garett Jones | Mar 18, 2009
Garett Jones discusses AIG bonuses with Ben Merens on Wisconsin Public Radio.  Listen to the audio here.…
Forbes.com

Katrina Response And The Bailout: Twin Disasters

Garett Jones, Daniel M. Rothschild | Feb 25, 2009
Garett Jones and Daniel Rothschild discuss similarities between the Katrina recovery and the bailout on Forbes.com. On the surface, Hurricane Katrina and the financial crisis might not seem to have much in common. One was a natural disaster, the other a story of man-made markets collapsing. One struck the poor and defenseless, the other, the hubristic…
MORE MEDIA CLIPPINGS