Housing was ground zero for the Great Recession. Between early 2006 and Obama's inauguration in 2009, average house prices fell by a third across the country. In certain areas, including cities as diverse as Akron, Orlando and Las Vegas, house prices fell by more than half.

The extension and expansion of the payroll tax holidays for workers would be number one on my list and key to avoiding recession.

I've done work for both Democrats and Republicans.

Predicting recessions is indeed a dark art, but I think we are several years away from the next one.

There is a banking adage that if it's growing like a weed, it's a good chance that it's a weed.

Yes. I don't think it would be appropriate at this point to raise taxes on anyone, certainly not in 2011.

They called me the sexiest economist in America, and that was years ago, when I had hair and body mass and my teeth were shiny.