The Politics of Technological Progress. Parties, Time Horizons and Long-term Economic Development

They had originally planned to conduct tabletop exercises on the failure of a government-sponsored enterprise like Fannie Mae and the collapse of the dollar, but decided against doing so for fear that word might leak to the press, leading the public to believe we thought these scenarios imminent. When I accepted the job at Treasury, I told President Bush that I wanted to help manage our economic relationship with China. To be successful, we needed to involve the key policy makers of both countries, and I knew I could assist the administration, given my years of experience in China. Launched in September 2006, the Strategic Economic Dialogue (SED) brought together the most senior leaders of both countries to focus on long-term economic matters such as economic imbalances, trade, investment, finance, energy, and the environment. I led the U.S. side, while the feisty vice premier Wu Yi (followed in 2008 by the very able Wang Qishan) represented China. The SEDБЂ™s success is one of the achievements I am most proud of, and I am delighted to see it continued by the Obama administration ...»