Intro

The Phillips Curve

Unemployment and Labor

Trump's Conundrum

Time to Rewind

Lessons and Insights

Post Show Musings

Outro

Probably the scariest, most dreaded term in economics is stagflation. Those who lived through the crisis in the 1970s can attest to this. In short, stagflation is defined as a period of low-to-no economic growth combined with high unemployment and high inflation. It’s a deadly recipe that took extraordinary measures to break the last time we experienced this phenomenon, and the method used back then is still highly contested territory.

If you’ve heard the term more often in recent months, it’s because some economists are beginning to fear a resurgence of stagflation due to the policies of the Trump administration. So today we’re doing a very deep dive into the economy to discuss the differences between now and the crisis of the ‘70s and show how Trump might be singlehandedly pushing us into an entirely new and preventable stagflation crisis.

Access the Show Notes online.

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:00

The Phillips Curve: 00:03:34

Unemployment and Labor: 00:17:18

Trump's Conundrum: 00:20:05

Time to Rewind: 00:24:53

Lessons and Insights: 00:30:19

Post Show Musings: 00:42:28

Outro: 00:54:13

Resources

Investopedia: What Is Stagflation, What Causes It, and Why Is It Bad? 

The New York Times: Strong Dollar vs. Weak Dollar

Office of the Historian: Oil Embargo, 1973–1974

Federal Reserve History: The Great Inflation

NBER: The Nixon Shock after Forty Years: The Import Surcharge Revisited Douglas A. Irwin Working Paper 17749

FRED: Personal Saving Rate

FRED: New Privately-Owned Housing Units Started: Total Units

FRED: Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers: Food in U.S. City Average

BIG by Matt Stoller

UNFTR Episode Resources

Housing First: Non-Negotiable #1.

The Energy Independence Myth.

Building a Civilian Labor Corps: Bracing for the AI Job Apocalypse. Non-Negotiable #2.

The Global Order of Money: How Exactly Does It Make the World Go ’Round?

--

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, TikTok and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

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Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Unf*cking the Republic is produced by 99 and engineered by Manny Faces Media (mannyfacesmedia.com). Original music is by Tom McGovern (tommcgovern.com). The show is hosted by Max and distributed by 99.

Probably the scariest, most dreaded term in economics is stagflation. Those who lived through the crisis in the 1970s can attest to this. In short, stagflation is defined as a period of low-to-no economic growth combined with high unemployment and high inflation. It&rsquo;s a deadly recipe that took extraordinary measures to break the last time we experienced this phenomenon, and the method used back then is still highly contested territory.
If you&rsquo;ve heard the term more often in recent months, it&rsquo;s because some economists are beginning to fear a resurgence of stagflation due to the policies of the Trump administration. So today we&rsquo;re doing a very deep dive into the economy to discuss the differences between now and the crisis of the &lsquo;70s and show how Trump might be singlehandedly pushing us into an entirely new and preventable stagflation crisis.
<a href="https://www.unftr.com/episodes/unftr150">Access the Show Notes online.</a>
Chapters
Intro: 00:01:00
The Phillips Curve: 00:03:34
Unemployment and Labor: 00:17:18
Trump's Conundrum: 00:20:05
Time to Rewind: 00:24:53
Lessons and Insights: 00:30:19
Post Show Musings: 00:42:28
Outro: 00:54:13
Resources
Investopedia: <a href="https://www.investopedia.com/terms/s/stagflation.asp">What Is Stagflation, What Causes It, and Why Is It Bad?</a>&nbsp;
The New York Times: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/27/briefing/donald-trump-currency.html">Strong Dollar vs. Weak Dollar</a>
Office of the Historian: <a href="https://history.state.gov/milestones/1969-1976/oil-embargo">Oil Embargo, 1973&ndash;1974</a>
Federal Reserve History: <a href="https://www.federalreservehistory.org/essays/great-inflation">The Great Inflation</a>
NBER: <a href="https://www.nber.org/system/files/working_papers/w17749/w17749.pdf">The Nixon Shock after Forty Years: The Import Surcharge Revisited Douglas A. Irwin Working Paper 17749</a>
FRED: <a href="https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/PSAVERT">Personal Saving Rate</a>
FRED: <a href="https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/HOUST">New Privately-Owned Housing Units Started: Total Units</a>
FRED: <a href="https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/CPIUFDNS">Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers: Food in U.S. City Average</a>
<a href="https://www.thebignewsletter.com/">BIG by Matt Stoller</a>
UNFTR Episode Resources
<a href="https://www.unftr.com/episodes/unftr141">Housing First: Non-Negotiable #1.</a>
<a href="https://www.unftr.com/episodes/topical19">The Energy Independence Myth.</a>
<a href="https://www.unftr.com/episodes/unftr142">Building a Civilian Labor Corps: Bracing for the AI Job Apocalypse. Non-Negotiable #2.</a>
<a href="https://www.unftr.com/episodes/unftr39">The Global Order of Money: How Exactly Does It Make the World Go &rsquo;Round?</a>
--
If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: <a href="https://unftr.com/rate">unftr.com/rate</a> and follow us on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Unfucking-The-Republic-102319714930389">Facebook</a>, <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/unftr.com">Bluesky</a>, <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@unftrpod">TikTok</a>&nbsp;and <a href="https://www.instagram.com/unftrpod/">Instagram</a> at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at <a href="https://www.unftr.com/">unftr.com</a>.
Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at <a href="https://shop.unftr.com/">shop.unftr.com</a>.
Check out the UNFTR Pod Love playlist on Spotify: <a href="https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1PpzNXBub9FLngMradJByC?si=abaed3d396504fae">spoti.fi/3yzIlUP.</a>
Visit our bookshop.org page at <a href="https://bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod">bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod</a> to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at<a href="https://bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations"> bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations</a>.
Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at <a href="https://www.unftr.com/accessibility">unftr.com/accessibility</a>.
Unf*cking the Republic is produced by 99 and engineered by Manny Faces Media (<a href="https://www.mannyfacesmedia.com">mannyfacesmedia.com</a>). Original music is by Tom McGovern (<a href="http://www.tommcgovern.com/">tommcgovern.com</a>). The show is hosted by Max and distributed by 99.

Unf*cking The Republic® (UNFTR) is a series of audio essays on the grand American experiment lovingly curated and presented by a quasi-anonymous political writer. 

Each essay reflects on a singular topic that is generally misunderstood or purposely obfuscated by the so-called “powers that be.” As we know, history is written by the victors and can be perilously manufactured to favor destructive world views. These views become intractably ingrained in the public consciousness and pervert public policy, oftentimes with horrific results. 

As of this podcast’s founding, we find ourselves living in a true kakistocracy. The disconnect between what we believe and what is actually happening below the surface or in plain sight is where this podcast lives. 

Together we’ll upend conventional wisdom, blow up narratives on the left, right and center and use magical devices like facts, logic and reason to explain how exactly we arrived in bizarro America, the funhouse mirror version of what was originally intended. #UNFTR

Unf*cking The Republic® (UNFTR) is a series of audio essays on the grand American experiment lovingly curated and presented by a quasi-anonymous political writer. 
Each essay reflects on a singular topic that is generally misunderstood or purposely obfuscated by the so-called “powers that be.” As we know, history is written by the victors and can be perilously manufactured to favor destructive world views. These views become intractably ingrained in the public consciousness and pervert public policy, oftentimes with horrific results. 
As of this podcast’s founding, we find ourselves living in a true kakistocracy. The disconnect between what we believe and what is actually happening below the surface or in plain sight is where this podcast lives. 
Together we’ll upend conventional wisdom, blow up narratives on the left, right and center and use magical devices like facts, logic and reason to explain how exactly we arrived in bizarro America, the funhouse mirror version of what was originally intended. #UNFTR

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