Modern Monetary Theory - MMT

What is MMT and how could it completely change your perception of life in a nation with a sovereign fiat currency?

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MMT - What is it anyway??
"I've heard it called the Magic Money Tree"
"If we just keep printing money, we'll devalue the dollar!"
"Printing money will cause inflation!"
"OhEmGee the National Debt!!"

We've all heard loads of rumors...now it's time to get the truth!

Use the arrows or swipe through the slides to learn more.
Modern Monetary Theory or MMT
MMT is just a description of how sovereign fiat, floating exchange rate currencies like the US dollar actually work. MMT helps us move past the outdated gold-standard thinking that hasn't been right for decades.

It's not something to implement someday, it is exactly how our money works TODAY!!
Sovereign currency issuers...
Many governments issue their own currency. The sovereign issuer of a nation’s currency is nothing like the users of its currency - such as households, businesses, or state and local governments.

The currency issuer is not constrained to balanced budgeting in the same way as a currency user.
Government Solvency
Sovereign governments can never run out of the currency they issue.

No matter what politicians or talking heads on TV say, when a country issues its own sovereign currency, it can never run out.

That would be like the scorekeeper in baseball running out of points! Crazy, right?
Taxes and Federal Spending
Federal taxes are not collected in order for the government to spend later. They are actually deleted out of existence!

As a matter of fact, in order for us to pay taxes in the first place, the government, the CURRENCY ISSUER, has to create (or spend into existence) the money. Then, we CURRENCY USERS have to find a way to get some money to pay our taxes.
The National Debt
It is not possible for a currency issuer to go broke.

Most governments, most of the time, will run fiscal deficits. This is not a matter of concern, and is indeed a good thing, as it means most private sectors will be able to run the financial surpluses they wish to add to their net savings.

The government’s deficit is our surplus – we should be glad all that money hasn’t been taxed out of the economy!
Where Do I Learn More?
Look through our collection of articles below to learn more! They are conveniently categorized and there are plenty of resources from MMT Beginner to Macroeconomics Expert level.
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Browse our MMT focused articles and filter them using the tabs at the top to find a specific topic.

Browse our MMT focused articles and filter them using the dropdown tab at the top to find a specific topic.

  • All Articles
  • Federal Reserve
  • Hyperinflation
  • Inflation
  • Job Guarantee
  • MMT 101
  • MMT Academics
  • MMT Rebuttal
  • National Debt
  • Social Security
  • Taxation
All Articles
  • All Articles
  • Federal Reserve
  • Hyperinflation
  • Inflation
  • Job Guarantee
  • MMT 101
  • MMT Academics
  • MMT Rebuttal
  • National Debt
  • Social Security
  • Taxation
Inflation Reduction Lies

Fact-checking Biden’s Inflation Remarks

On October 21st, 2022, President Biden made an address regarding his administration’s historic deficit reduction. Let’s break it down. 

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Explainer: What is Modern Monetary Theory?

Steven Hail explains the basics of Modern Monetary Theory using the Australian government as an example.

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a compass and US dollar bills

End the FEDish: Redirecting Our Anger and Efforts to Save the World

Not “believing in” the insights coming from the MMT lens is denying the institutional reality of how money is created and operationalized.

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man writing in ledger

Economics Bores Far Too Many People For Progressives to Make Real Progress Last

Your kids are not strapped with debt. Just the debt of ignorance we place on them by repeating debt and deficit myths.

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People holding signs against capitalism

Don’t Call it Inflation, it’s Capital Retaliation

Regardless of what the media tries to tell us, there are only two real-world reasons prices are rising at this time: disruption to the supply chain and capital retaliation. 

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Do We Need Taxes? The MMT Perspective

It’s elementary, my dear Holmes. Taxes drive the currency.

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close up photo of US treasury bonds

Do Bond Sales & Borrowing Finance US Deficit Spending?

Professor L. Randall Wray responds to this question and debunks the misunderstandings and fallacies surrounding it.

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Democrats Need to Give Up Being Deficit Hawks Even When it Feels Good Politically

A nation like the U.S. with a sovereign currency that borrows in that currency and allows that currency to “float” is nothing like a household when it comes to budget.

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Countering the Debt Ceiling Madness

If you’ve been watching the news, you’ll have noticed that the narrative of the moment is the debt ceiling. From the mainstream media to the …

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bitcoin

Colorado Accepts Crypto to Pay Taxes

Accepting cryptocurrency is more like accepting stocks.

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image of a VHS player and VHS tape

CBO—Still Out of Paradigm after All These Years

Gold-standard thinking is inapplicable to a sovereign, currency-issuing government operating under flexible exchange rates.

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Canada: Flagellation Letter in National Post

So-called “fiscal anchors” instituted in peacetime are simply ideological vehicles intended to limit government spending, much as medieval monks recommended flagellation as a means of curbing unwanted desires.

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Memes for Sharing

Why we need to debunk the 'deficit myth' - BBC REEL

Government spending is increasing at an unprecedented rate to deal with the effects of the coronavirus pandemic. Many people worry this could burden future generations.

However, economist Stephanie Kelton, author of The Deficit Myth, argues that we need to rethink our attitudes towards government spending.

Could Modern Monetary Theory help us navigate our way out of this crisis – and even help build a fairer economy?

Producer: Dan John
Animation: Jacqueline Nixon

(Republished with permission from the BBC)

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Modern Monetary Theory and Economic Justice

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Modern Monetary Theory and Democracy

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Modern Monetary Theory - Health and Wellbeing

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