Austerity, defined as reduced spending and increased frugality in the economic sector, has been the subject of much debate recently. Austerity proponents argue that such practices are exactly the tough medicine required to reduce burgeoning deficits and restore financial order. Opponents counter that as the global economy shows signs of emerging from a prolonged and stubborn recession, austerity policies will stunt growth and may even lead to a double-dip downturn.
On February 28 at 5:30 p.m., participants Tim Kane and Clay Lowery will debate this timely topic in the 29th Annual Fordham Debate: “Resolved: Austerity measures are a necessary tactic to deal with a country’s financial crisis.” The event is free and open to the public.
“The debate could not be scheduled at a more opportune time,” said debate organizer Christian Johnson, Professor of Law at the University of Utah S.J. Quinney College of Law. “With the U.S. Congress battling over the proper approach to the current U.S. fiscal situation. The debate should prove to be lively, informative and timely.”
Tim Kane is the chief economist at the Hudson Institute and founder of the social networking startup StoryPoint.co. Kane is the author, most recently of the book, Bleeding Talent, about leadership in the U.S. military. With frequent collaborator Glenn Hubbard, Kane blogs at balanceofeconomics.com. Hubbard and Kane are also co-authors of the forthcoming book Balance: Why Great Powers Lose It and How America Can Regain It. Kane has published scholarly research on diverse topics including entrepreneurship, economic growth, labor, and national security. He has provided commentary for numerous media outlets and his research has been cited by the Wall Street Journal and The New York Times, among others.
Kane earned a Ph.D. in economics from U.C. San Diego after serving as an intelligence officer in the U.S. Air Force. He is a 1990 graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy.
Clay Lowery served as the Assistant Secretary for International Affairs at the U.S. Treasury Department from 2005 to 2009. In that role, he managed a team of over 200 people with responsibility for economic and financial diplomacy, monetary and banking issues, currency strategy, and trade and investment practices. He chaired the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), which is the government committee assigned to review those international mergers and acquisitions that may affect the national security interests of the United States. After his government service, Lowery was Vice President for International Government Affairs with Cisco Systems and Managing Director for the Glover Park Group. Earlier in his career, he was a program officer for the International Republican Institute.
Lowery received his B.A. in Economics and Foreign Affairs from the University of Virginia (Phi Beta Kappa) and his M.Sc. in Economics at the London School of Economics.
Moderator Kern Alexander has led the international financial regulation project and served as Senior Research Fellow in Financial Regulation at CFAP since 2003. In 2009, he was appointed to the Professorial Chair for Law and Finance at the University of Zurich. He is co-author of Global Governance of Financial Systems: The International Regulation of Systemic Risk (OUP, 2005). In December 2009, Dr. Alexander was appointed to a five-year term to the Financial Services Advisory Panel by the European Parliament Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs as one of three ‘academic specialist advisers’ to advise the Committee on EU financial law and regulation.
The 29th Annual Fordham Debate will take place on Thursday, February 28 at 5:30 p.m. in the Sutherland Moot Courtroom at the University of Utah S.J. Quinney College of Law. The debate will be preceded by a 5:00 p.m. reception with light refreshments in the foyer. Free parking will be available in the Rice-Eccles Stadium Parking Lot. One hour CLE (applied for). Attendance is free and open to the public.
The event will also be broadcast live on ulaw.tv beginning at 5:30 p.m.
The Fordham Debate is named in honor of Professor Jefferson B. Fordham, an outstanding legal scholar and defender of individual and civil rights who joined the University of Utah College of Law faculty in 1972. The annual debate addresses relevant contemporary public policy and legal issues.
For more information, call 801-585-3479.