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Michele Boldrin

Michele Boldrin (born August 20, 1956) is an Italian economist specializing in dynamic general equilibrium models, with research focused on economic growth, business cycles, innovation, and intellectual property. He serves as the Joseph Gibson Hoyt Distinguished Professor of Economics at Washington University in St. Louis, where he has been a faculty member since 2006.^[1]^[2] Boldrin earned his PhD in economics from the University of Rochester in 1987 and his laurea in economics from Università Ca’ Foscari Venezia in 1982. His academic career includes positions at institutions such as Northwestern University, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, and the University of Minnesota prior to Washington University. A Fellow of the Econometric Society since 2000, Boldrin has made significant contributions to understanding indeterminacy in growth models and the role of habits in asset pricing and business cycles.^[2]^[3]^[3] Boldrin is best known for co-authoring Against Intellectual Monopoly with David K. Levine, published in 2008 by Cambridge University Press, which contends that patents and copyrights, as mechanisms of intellectual monopoly, suppress competition, hinder innovation, and fail to deliver promised benefits to creators or society. He has authored or edited several other books and over 40 refereed articles on topics including trade policy in growing economies and the reconstruction of economic recessions.^[4]^[3]^[2] In addition to his academic work, Boldrin has engaged in public policy and politics in Italy, serving on government commissions for pension reform and founding organizations such as Fare per Fermare il Declino (2012–2014) and Liberi Oltre le Illusioni (2018–present) to advocate for structural economic reforms. More recently, he co-founded the Drin Drin Movement in 2024, which seeks to establish a pragmatic liberal political alternative.^[3]^[5]

Biography

Early life and education

Michele Boldrin was born on August 20, 1956, in Padova, Italy. He relocated to Mestre-Venezia at age ten and completed his secondary education at Liceo “Giordano Bruno.”^[2] ^[1] Boldrin pursued undergraduate studies in economics at Università Ca' Foscari in Venice, earning a laurea degree magna cum laude in July 1982. Immediately afterward, from 1982 to 1983, he worked as a research associate at IRSEV and as a researcher in the Department of Economics at the University of Venice.^[2] ^[1] In September 1983, Boldrin entered the Ph.D. program in economics at the University of Rochester in the United States, receiving a Master of Science in June 1985 and completing his Ph.D. in June 1987 under the supervision of Lionel W. McKenzie, with a focus on the theory of optimal growth. During his doctoral studies, he served as a visiting fellow for one year at the University of Chicago's Department of Economics.^[2] ^[1]

Academic career and appointments

Michele Boldrin earned his Laurea in economics from Università Ca’ Foscari in Venice in 1982, graduating magna cum laude, followed by an M.A. and Ph.D. in economics from the University of Rochester in 1985 and 1987, respectively, under the supervision of Lionel W. McKenzie.^[2]^[3] Following his doctorate, Boldrin held an initial position in the Department of Economics at the University of Chicago from 1986 to 1987. He then served as assistant professor at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) from 1987 to 1990, advancing to associate professor at Northwestern University's Kellogg Graduate School of Management from 1990 to 1994.^[2]^[3] In 1994, Boldrin was appointed the Marc Rich Professor of Economics at Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, a position he held until 1999. He subsequently joined the University of Minnesota as professor of economics and director of graduate studies from 1999 to 2006.^[3] Boldrin has been professor of economics at Washington University in St. Louis since 2006, where he was named the Joseph Gibson Hoyt Distinguished Professor and served as department chair from 2008 to 2012.^[2]^[3] He also holds ongoing visiting professorships at Università Ca’ Foscari in Venice and Peking University since 2017.^[3] Throughout his career, Boldrin has undertaken visiting positions at institutions including Stanford University, the University of Pennsylvania, UCLA, Academia Sinica, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, the University of Chicago, Università Bocconi, the Institute for Advanced Study at Wuhan University, Beijing University, Kyoto University, and the University of Tokyo.^[2]

Research Contributions

Economic growth and business cycles

Michele Boldrin's research on economic growth and business cycles employs dynamic general equilibrium frameworks to analyze fluctuations driven primarily by real shocks, such as technology and productivity disturbances, rather than nominal rigidities or demand-side impulses. This approach aligns with real business cycle (RBC) theory, emphasizing supply-side mechanisms and intertemporal optimization by agents.^[2] His contributions extend standard neoclassical models by incorporating features like habit formation, sectoral heterogeneity, and endogenous innovations to better reconcile theoretical predictions with empirical observations on output volatility, asset returns, and labor dynamics.^[6] In the domain of business cycles, Boldrin co-developed modifications to RBC models to address shortcomings in matching asset pricing anomalies. In the 2001 paper "Habit Persistence, Asset Returns, and the Business Cycle," co-authored with Lawrence J. Christiano and Jonas D. M. Fisher and published in the American Economic Review, the authors introduce habit-forming preferences—where utility depends on consumption relative to past levels—and a two-sector production structure with limited intersectoral factor mobility. This setup generates sufficient risk premia to explain the observed equity premium puzzle (excess returns on stocks over risk-free rates averaging around 6% historically in U.S. data) without requiring implausibly high coefficients of relative risk aversion, typically exceeding 10 in benchmark RBC models. The model also replicates key business cycle facts, such as the correlation between consumption and investment growth, under parameter values calibrated to post-1950 U.S. data, where habit persistence amplifies the effects of productivity shocks.^[6] Similarly, the 1995 Journal of Political Economy article "Labor Contracts and Business Cycles," with Michael Horvath, defends RBC paradigms against critiques of poor labor market fit by incorporating implicit long-term contracts that smooth wages but allow variable hours. Calibrated to U.S. data from 1955–1988, the model matches the observed volatility and persistence of hours worked (standard deviation around 1.5% of trend) and the low correlation between productivity and real wages, attributing cycle dynamics to efficient responses to real shocks rather than market failures.^[7] Boldrin's work on growth integrates cyclical elements, exploring endogenous dynamics that produce sustained expansion alongside fluctuations. In "Equilibrium Models Displaying Endogenous Fluctuations and Chaos: A Survey" (1990, Journal of Economic Theory), he reviews conditions for complex aperiodic cycles or chaotic paths in multisector optimal growth models without stochastic shocks, arising from nonlinearities in production technologies or intertemporal linkages, such as in overlapping generations frameworks. These indeterminacies can lead to multiple steady-state growth paths, challenging Solow-Swan exogenous growth assumptions by highlighting self-sustaining booms and busts via dynamic externalities or learning-by-doing spillovers.^[8] Collaborating with David K. Levine, the 1999 paper "Growth Cycles and Market Crashes" (Journal of Economic Theory) models perpetual growth punctuated by rare crashes: under high risk aversion (calibrated to 5–10), adverse productivity news triggers sharp asset price drops (up to 30–50% in simulations matching 1929 or 1987 events), as agents shift portfolios toward safer assets, amplifying downturns before recovery via adjusted savings rates.^[9] More recent contributions link growth to cycles through innovation. The 2024 Journal of Economic Theory paper "A Theory of the Dynamics of Factor Shares" proposes an endogenous growth model where innovation-driven cycles alter labor and capital income shares: during expansions, creative destruction raises capital's share (from 0.3 to 0.4 in U.S. data since 1980), while contractions reverse this via reduced R&D investment, calibrated to postwar fluctuations showing labor share volatility of 2–3%. This causal mechanism underscores how micro-level inventive activity propagates to macro aggregates, supporting policies favoring competition over monopoly protections to sustain long-run growth rates around 2% annually.^[10] Boldrin's analyses consistently prioritize empirical calibration—e.g., using Solow residuals for TFP shocks explaining 70–80% of U.S. output variance—and critique demand-driven narratives for overemphasizing frictions unsubstantiated by disaggregated data.^[11]

Technological innovation and dynamic models

Boldrin has contributed to the integration of technological innovation into dynamic general equilibrium models, emphasizing competitive mechanisms over monopolistic incentives for endogenous growth. In collaboration with David K. Levine, he developed frameworks where innovation emerges from factor-saving processes within concave production structures, challenging the necessity of increasing returns or externalities for sustained technological progress.^[12]^[13] In their 2002 paper "Factor Saving Innovation," Boldrin and Levine construct a model where capital is allocated between self-reproduction and technological improvement, generating endogenous innovation and growth paths that depend on initial conditions. This approach demonstrates that factor-saving innovations can drive cycles and long-term development in competitive equilibria without relying on scale economies, providing a microfoundation for technological change in neoclassical settings.^[12]^[14] The model predicts that innovation rates vary with resource diversion from production, yielding realistic dynamics such as transitional growth accelerations observed in historical data.^[15] Building on this, Boldrin and Levine's "Perfectly Competitive Innovation" (2003) extends the analysis to constant returns to scale, showing that decentralized competition sustains ongoing innovation and Schumpeterian creative destruction in general equilibrium. Firms invest in R&D under perfect competition, leading to persistent growth without patents, as recombinant knowledge diffusion enables cumulative technological advancement.^[16] This work formalizes how market incentives align individual discoveries into aggregate progress, contrasting with monopoly-based theories.^[17] In "A Model of Discovery" (2009), they formalize innovation as a discovery process in expanding knowledge spaces, where empirical evidence indicates weak links between patent strength and innovation rates. The dynamic model incorporates sequential inventions under competition, reproducing stylized facts like rising innovation in low-IP environments and path-dependent technological trajectories.^[18]^[19] More recently, Boldrin co-authored a 2024 paper on factor share dynamics, embedding endogenous innovation in a growth-and-cycles equilibrium where technological shocks alter labor and capital returns over business cycles. This highlights causal links between innovation bursts and factor reallocations, supported by calibration to U.S. data from 1929–2020 showing innovation-driven wage-premium fluctuations.^[10] These models collectively underscore Boldrin's view that dynamic competition, rather than policy-induced monopolies, underpins technological evolution.^[2]

Stance on Intellectual Property

Arguments against patents and copyrights

Boldrin contends that patents fail to demonstrably enhance innovation or productivity, as extensive empirical analysis reveals no causal link between patent strength and inventive output across industries or historical periods.^[20] He argues that patents instead generate monopolistic distortions, enabling incumbents to block rivals through litigation and licensing fees, which elevate entry costs and divert resources toward legal rent-seeking rather than research and development.^[21] For instance, in the software sector, Boldrin highlights how pre-1980s innovation surged without robust patent enforcement, only to decelerate amid rising patent thickets and "patent troll" lawsuits post-State Street Bank v. Citizens Bank (1998), which expanded patentable subject matter.^[22] Complementing this, Boldrin asserts that copyrights similarly impede creative expression by prolonging monopolies beyond any plausible incentive period, as evidenced by the U.S. extension to life-plus-70-years under the 1998 Sonny Bono Act, which primarily benefits estate holders without spurring new works.^[23] He draws on industries like fashion and food recipes, where unprotected imitation accelerates diffusion and iterative improvement—such as seasonal trends driving apparel sales exceeding $300 billion annually in the U.S. by 2008—contrasting with sectors burdened by IP, where enforcement stifles derivatives.^[24] In Boldrin's framework, innovation thrives via market mechanisms like first-mover advantages and trade secrecy, as seen in the British Industrial Revolution (circa 1760–1840), where textile and steam technologies advanced rapidly despite lax patent uptake, with only 10–20% of inventors filing despite availability post-1624 Statute of Monopolies.^[20] He critiques the theoretical justification for IP as resting on unproven assumptions of underinvestment absent monopoly rents, ignoring how competition fosters cumulative progress, and warns that politically entrenched IP expansion—often lobbied by pharmaceutical and entertainment giants—exacerbates inequality by transferring wealth from consumers to protected creators without net welfare gains.^[25]

Empirical evidence and case studies presented

Boldrin and Levine's analysis of empirical studies reveals no systematic evidence that patents enhance innovation or productivity. In a meta-review of 24 empirical investigations conducted up to 2006, they found that strengthening patent protection either had no effect on research and development expenditures or innovation rates in most cases, with only two studies showing a positive correlation and several indicating negative outcomes, such as reduced R&D in software sectors post-patent expansion.^[21] Similarly, Lerner’s examination of 150 years of patent law changes across countries demonstrated that reforms expanding patent scope often correlated with diminished innovation metrics, including fewer subsequent patents filed.^[21] Historical evidence from nations that delayed or lacked patent systems underscores innovation's independence from intellectual monopoly. Switzerland, without patents until 1888, achieved leadership in chemicals, pharmaceuticals, and watchmaking, ranking second in innovation exhibits per capita at the 1851 Crystal Palace Exhibition and developing firms like Novartis pre-patent era.^[26] The Netherlands operated without patents until 1817 and saw food processing innovations rise from 11% to 37% of industrial exhibits after 1869 abolition, enabling breakthroughs like Levinstein's textile dyes that outcompeted British patented rivals before World War I.^[26] Italy's pharmaceutical sector produced 119 of 1,282 new compounds globally from 1961 to 1980 without product patents, ranking fifth worldwide by the 1970s, but innovation declined sharply post-1978 patent introduction, yielding only 8 of 108 compounds from 1980 to 1983.^[26] Case studies of specific inventions highlight patents' potential to impede progress. James Watt's steam engine patent, granted in 1769 and extended to 1800, blocked rival developments like compound and high-pressure engines, limiting annual horsepower additions to 750 pre-expiration; post-1800, this surged to 4,000 annually, with fuel efficiency improving fivefold through competitive collaboration in Cornwall.^[26] The Wright brothers' aviation patents from 1906 similarly stalled U.S. aircraft advancement by litigating competitors, shifting innovation leadership to patent-lenient France until World War I.^[26] In industries like fashion, rapid seasonal cycles persist without design patents, as firms like Zara replicate high-end styles within months via first-mover advantages; software innovations, including graphical user interfaces and open-source projects like Linux, proliferated pre-1981 patent eligibility and continue via non-exclusive models holding dominant market shares, such as Apache's 68% of webservers in 2004.^[26] For copyrights, Boldrin cites the 19th-century U.S. market, where pirated English novels like Dickens' A Christmas Carol sold for six cents versus $2.50 originals, expanding literacy and dissemination without deterring creation, as British authors profited from U.S. manuscript sales until 1890 reciprocity.^[26] The pornography sector further illustrates rapid technological adoption—leading Internet video by 1999—absent strong enforcement, contrasting slower mainstream media progress.^[26] These examples collectively argue that competitive markets, secrecy, and lead-time advantages suffice for incentivizing invention, with monopolies often extracting rents at innovation's expense.^[26]

Political Involvement

Engagement in Italian politics

Michele Boldrin entered Italian politics in 2012 as a co-founder of Fermare il Declino (Act to Stop the Decline), a libertarian-leaning movement emphasizing fiscal discipline, reduction of public debt, and market-oriented reforms, alongside journalist Oscar Giannino.^[27] The initiative sought to address Italy's economic stagnation through drastic cuts in government spending and bureaucracy, positioning itself against entrenched political elites. Despite initial media attention, the party achieved limited electoral success, failing to secure parliamentary seats in the 2013 general elections. In the lead-up to the 2014 European Parliament elections, Boldrin aligned with centrist-liberal coalitions, running as a candidate for Scelta Europea—an alliance comprising Scelta Civica, Centro Democratico, and Fare—in the Italy North-Eastern constituency.^[28] He received 6,986 preference votes but was not elected, reflecting the challenges faced by fragmented liberal forces amid Italy's polarized political landscape. This period also saw attempts at broader liberal alliances, including discussions with figures like Bruno Tabacci, though internal divisions prevented consolidation.^[29] Boldrin's political activities waned in subsequent years, focusing primarily on academic and public intellectual pursuits, until 2024 when he co-founded the Movimento Drin Drin with entrepreneur Alberto Forchielli. Launched in September 2024, the movement advocated pragmatic, ideology-free policies targeting young voters and aiming to revive Italy's center through pro-innovation, free-market stances, including criticism of excessive state intervention and support for technological advancement.^[5] By October 2025, Drin Drin formalized as the party ORA! during a founding congress in Abano Terme, where Boldrin was elected secretary and Forchielli president.^[30] ^[31] ORA! positions itself as an "extreme center" force, promoting nuclear energy acquisition, anti-Putin foreign policy, and economic liberalization to counter perceived declines in competitiveness.^[32] As of its inception, the party has not yet contested elections, focusing on building a base amid Italy's fragmented opposition to major coalitions.

Advocacy for free-market policies

Boldrin co-founded the liberal political party Fare per Fermare il Declino (Act to Stop the Decline) in 2012, advocating policies centered on fiscal restraint, tax simplification through flat-rate systems, and economic liberalization to address Italy's stagnation.^[33] The party's platform emphasized reducing public expenditure from 50% of GDP to levels seen in more dynamic economies, arguing that high taxation and regulatory burdens empirically correlate with lower growth rates, as evidenced by Italy's post-1990s productivity slowdown compared to peer nations.^[33] Boldrin, as a key intellectual figure, promoted these measures via public speeches and writings, contending that competitive markets, not state subsidies, drive innovation and employment, drawing on cross-country data showing liberalization's positive effects in sectors like telecommunications. He assumed the party presidency in 2013, steering it toward evidence-based critiques of welfare expansion and labor market rigidities, though it secured under 1% of votes in national elections, limiting its legislative influence.^[34] In parallel, Boldrin has critiqued protectionist policies, such as tariffs, as distortions that raise consumer costs without net benefits, aligning with free-trade principles supported by historical data on post-WWII growth under open markets.^[35] This stance reflects his broader view that government interventions, including industrial subsidies, undermine causal mechanisms of prosperity, favoring instead decentralized decision-making by firms and individuals. More recently, Boldrin co-initiated the Drin Drin Association in 2024 with entrepreneur Alberto Forchielli, evolving into the party Ora! by 2025, with Boldrin as secretary. The movement positions itself as a pragmatic alternative to Italy's entrenched statism, prioritizing deregulation, support for entrepreneurship, and merit-based reforms to reverse demographic and economic decline.^[5] It critiques bipartisan fiscal profligacy, advocating spending caps tied to verifiable growth metrics, and has grown to over 14,000 members by mid-2025, polling at 0.7% amid calls for market-oriented immigration and education policies.^[36] Boldrin's leadership underscores empirical arguments against monopolistic privileges, extending his anti-IP scholarship to political demands for competitive openness in all sectors.

Public Commentary and Media Presence

Writings in Italian press

Michele Boldrin has regularly contributed opinion pieces and analyses to Italian outlets such as Linkiesta and the Econopoly blog of Il Sole 24 Ore, where he critiques fiscal policies, productivity myths, and structural economic challenges facing Italy. In a 2018 Linkiesta article, he argued against debt monetization proposals, emphasizing growth-oriented reforms over default or inflationary tactics, stating that prioritizing repayment through productivity gains is essential for long-term stability.^[37] Similarly, in an October 2018 piece for the same publication, Boldrin dismantled claims of fiscal multipliers in the "manovra del popolo," asserting that deficit-financed spending without structural changes would stifle investment and perpetuate stagnation.^[38] On Il Sole 24 Ore's Econopoly, Boldrin co-authored analyses challenging prevailing narratives on Italian capitalism and labor markets. A December 2021 post contended that Italy's economic malaise stems not from capitalism per se but from regulatory barriers and low innovation, urging deregulation and competition to foster entrepreneurship.^[39] Earlier, in August 2019, he refuted assertions of Italian labor productivity decline by citing OECD data showing stable per-hour output when adjusted for composition effects, attributing perceived issues to skill mismatches rather than inherent worker failings.^[40] These contributions often draw on empirical evidence from international datasets, contrasting with domestic policy debates dominated by short-term interventions. Boldrin's writings in Il Foglio and Linkiesta extend to broader political economy themes, including immigration and inequality. In a September 2019 Il Foglio essay, he critiqued recurring anti-capitalist rhetoric, arguing it ignores historical evidence of market-driven prosperity and perpetuates ideological stasis amid technological shifts.^[41] For Linkiesta, a January 2019 article projected that advancing automation would amplify inequality along cognitive lines, advocating education reforms to equip workers for complex tasks rather than redistribution alone.^[42] His pieces consistently prioritize data-driven arguments, such as discrediting overblown fiscal stimulus effects, and have appeared sporadically in Il Fatto Quotidiano, though primarily as economic commentary on current events.^[43]

Online platforms and debates

Michele Boldrin maintains an active presence on X (formerly Twitter) under the handle @micheleboldrin, where he has posted over 92,000 times as of 2025, engaging in real-time debates on economic policy, Italian politics, and international affairs.^[44] His posts often critique government interventions, such as pension systems and fiscal policies, while advocating free-market alternatives; for instance, on August 27, 2025, he argued against the notion that pensions are fully funded by individual contributions, emphasizing intergenerational transfers.^[45] Boldrin frequently challenges interlocutors on topics like inflation, electoral strategies, and ideological biases, as seen in his February 1, 2023, rebuttal to claims minimizing opposition to COVID-19 policies beyond figures like Trump and Bolsonaro.^[46] These exchanges highlight his commitment to data-driven arguments over narrative-driven ones, often urging followers to "follow the money" in assessing motives behind policy advocacy.^[47] As a founding editor of the Italian economics blog NoiseFromAmerika (noisefromamerika.org), established to provide analytical commentary on politics and economics from a market-oriented perspective, Boldrin has contributed articles and hosted discussions since its inception.^[48] The platform features his pieces on topics like deflation risks and educational reforms, such as his critique of Italy's classical high school system as hindering analytical skills.^[48] NoiseFromAmerika has served as a venue for online debates, including Boldrin's 2009 reflections on an in-person exchange with economist Bradford De Long over fiscal stimulus efficacy, underscoring tensions between Keynesian and dynamic growth models.^[49] Contributors, including Boldrin, emphasize empirical evidence over institutional consensus, positioning the blog as a counterpoint to mainstream Italian economic discourse. In 2025, Boldrin co-founded the Drin Drin movement with entrepreneur Alberto Forchielli, leveraging online platforms to build membership—reaching 14,000 by July—and debate systemic reforms like currency choice and ideological taboos in Italian politics.^[5] The movement's website and YouTube channel host videos of Boldrin's speeches, such as his May 19, 2025, address outlining pragmatic alternatives to entrenched parties, aiming to form a political entity by autumn.^[50] Through X and these digital channels, Boldrin promotes evidence-based policy debates, criticizing incoherent economic plans and calling for data-focused scrutiny of issues like middle-class stagnation.^[51] This online mobilization reflects his broader strategy of using digital tools to challenge policy orthodoxies, amassing poll visibility at 0.7% by August 2025.^[52]

Controversies and Criticisms

Debates on intellectual monopoly

Boldrin, in collaboration with David K. Levine, has prominently debated the merits of intellectual monopoly—referring to patents and copyrights as government-granted monopolies—asserting that such systems do more harm than good to innovation and economic growth. In their 2008 book Against Intellectual Monopoly, they argue that historical innovations, including James Watt's steam engine improvements in the 1760s and Elias Howe's sewing machine in the 1840s, proceeded effectively without strong patent enforcement, relying instead on competitive markets, first-mover advantages, and secrecy.^[4] ^[26] They further claim that empirical studies fail to demonstrate patents' net positive impact on productivity, often leading to rent-seeking, litigation costs exceeding $250 billion annually in the U.S. by the 2000s, and barriers to cumulative innovation.^[20] Critics have contested these views, particularly in academic reviews, arguing that Boldrin and Levine selectively emphasize cases where low replication costs allow natural market protections while downplaying high-fixed-cost industries like pharmaceuticals, where R&D investments average $1–2 billion per drug and patents enable recoupment against free-rider risks.^[53] ^[54] For instance, a 2011 Journal of Economic Literature review highlights that while patents may not be universally essential, abolishing them overlooks evidence from patent citation data showing knowledge spillovers and incentives aligned with social returns in complex technologies.^[53] Another analysis critiques their dismissal of copyright's role in creative industries, noting that self-actualization motives alone cannot sustain large-scale production without exclusivity, as evidenced by persistent underinvestment in unprotected digital goods post-2000s file-sharing surges.^[55] In response to detractors, Boldrin and Levine have maintained that patents distort markets by favoring incumbents and politically connected firms, citing software giants' patent thickets that stifle startups, and advocating trade secrets and contracts as superior alternatives without the deadweight losses of monopoly pricing.^[56] ^[23] Their 2013 article in the Journal of Economic Perspectives reinforces this by reviewing cross-country data from 1850–2000, finding no correlation between patent strength and growth rates, and attributing U.S. innovation leadership to market size rather than IP rigor.^[20] These exchanges underscore ongoing contention, with Boldrin's position influencing libertarian-leaning policy discussions but facing pushback from empirical economists emphasizing context-specific IP benefits.^[22]

Responses to modern monetary theory and other views

Boldrin has emerged as a prominent critic of Modern Monetary Theory (MMT), characterizing it as a recurrent but flawed economic fad that overstates the government's capacity to finance deficits without inflationary consequences or incentive distortions. In a public debate on October 25, 2019, with Warren Mosler, a key MMT proponent, Boldrin contested the theory's chartalist foundation—that taxes alone drive demand for sovereign currency—arguing that individuals can borrow privately issued funds denominated in the government's currency to meet tax obligations, thereby undermining MMT's emphasis on fiscal spending as unconstrained by revenue.^[57]^[58] The exchange highlighted Boldrin's insistence on market-driven monetary dynamics over state-imposed mechanisms, with Mosler reportedly exiting the discussion amid escalating disagreements.^[59] Boldrin extended similar critiques to Italian MMT advocate Paolo Barnard, rejecting claims that sovereign issuers of fiat currency face no solvency risks and can perpetually fund public expenditures through money creation without eroding currency acceptance. He contended that direct state issuance of money for spending, absent tax enforcement in that specific currency, would fail to gain voluntary adoption, as private agents prioritize assets with proven liquidity and store-of-value properties over unbacked fiscal outputs.^[60] This perspective aligns with Boldrin's broader advocacy for fiscal discipline, where deficits must reflect productive investments rather than indefinite monetary accommodation, drawing on empirical observations of hyperinflation episodes like Weimar Germany (1923) and Zimbabwe (2000s), where unchecked money printing led to currency collapse despite MMT-like rationales.^[61] Beyond MMT, Boldrin has responded to expansive Keynesian views on fiscal multipliers and stimulus, cautioning against overreliance on government intervention during downturns, as evidenced by his analysis of the 2008–2009 U.S. recovery, where private sector adjustments outpaced public spending effects. He argues that such policies distort resource allocation, favoring politically connected sectors over innovation-driven growth, and cites cross-country data showing sustained deficits correlating with slower long-term GDP per capita gains in high-debt economies like Italy (post-1990s).^[48] In lectures on monetary theory, Boldrin emphasizes classical principles of sound money, critiquing fiat regimes for enabling moral hazard while acknowledging central banks' role in stabilizing nominal aggregates, but only when tethered to rule-based frameworks rather than discretionary activism.^[62] These positions reflect his commitment to incentive-compatible policies, where monetary neutrality holds over the long run, countering heterodox claims of persistent fiscal-monetary decoupling.

References

[1]
Michele Boldrin '87 : Distinguished Alumni : Department of Economics
Michele Boldrin was born on August 20, 1956 in Padova, Italy. He studied economics at the University of Venice "Ca' Foscari", where he obtained his Laurea (BA ...Missing: biography | Show results with:biography
[2]
Michele Boldrin | Department of Economics
Michele Boldrin was born in Padova, Italy, in 1956. He moved to Mestre-Venezia at the age of ten, where he attended the Liceo “Giordano Bruno” and the ...Missing: biography | Show results with:biography
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[PDF] Michele Boldrin - Curriculum Vitae et Studiorum
2019-present Economic Editorialist, Fanpage, Il Foglio and La Verità (newspapers) 2019-present Academic Advisory Council, Institute for New Structural ...Missing: involvement | Show results with:involvement
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This is the central question in Against Intellectual Monopoly by Michele Boldrin and David Levine. The answer they come to is startling: except in a few ...
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Movimento Drin Drin: Home Page
Costruiamo insieme un'alternativa politica pragmatica e credibile. Accetti la sfida? Il Drin Drin vuole costruire un nuovo partito politico entro l'autunno ...Boldrin e Forchielli fanno sul... · Login Associati · Progetto · Manifesto
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Habit Persistence, Asset Returns, and the Business Cycle
Two modifications are introduced into the standard real-business-cycle model: habit preferences and a two-sector technology with limited intersectoral factor ...
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Labor Contracts and Business Cycles | Journal of Political Economy
This paper investigates the claim, often put forth by real business cycle proponents, that the poor performance of their models in matching real-world ...
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Equilibrium models displaying endogenous fluctuations and chaos
This paper surveys current developments in dynamic general equilibrium theory concerned with conditions under which endogenous fluctuations are possible.
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Growth Cycles and Market Crashes. Posted: 14 Aug 2008. See all articles by Michele Boldrin ... Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR). David K. Levine.Missing: publications | Show results with:publications
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A theory of the dynamics of factor shares - ScienceDirect.com
This paper proposes a theory of the dynamics of factor shares within the context of an equilibrium model of endogenous innovation, growth, and cycles.
[11]
[PDF] asset pricing lessons for modeling business cycles
MODELING BUSINESS CYCLES. Michele Boldrin. Lawrence J. Christiano. Jonas D.M. Fisher. Working Paper 5262. NATIONAL BUREAU OF ECONOMIC RESEARCH. 1050 ...
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Factor Saving Innovation - ScienceDirect.com
Here we study a simple model of factor saving technological improvement in a concave framework. Capital can be used either to reproduce itself, or, at some ...
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Factor Saving Innovation by Michele Boldrin, David K. Levine - SSRN
Growth paths and technological innovations also exhibit dependence upon initial conditions. The model provides a step toward a theory of endogenous innovation ...
[14]
Factor saving innovation - IDEAS/RePEc
Michele Boldrin · David Knudsen Levine. Abstract. We study a simple model of factor saving technological innovation in a concave framework. Capital can be used ...
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(PDF) Factor Saving Innovation - ResearchGate
Aug 6, 2025 · It has been argued that concave models exhibit less "endogeneity of growth" than models with increasing returns to scale.
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[PDF] Perfectly Competitive Innovation∗
Abstract. We construct a competitive model of innovation and growth under constant returns to scale. Previous models of growth under constant.
[17]
Competitive Equilibrium Growth - David K. Levine
We construct an abstract, dynamic general equilibrium model of innovation, growth and cycles in the spirit of Schumpeter's Theory of Economic Development.
[18]
[PDF] A Model of Discovery Michele Boldrin and David K. Levine* This ...
Dec 13, 2008 · Abstract: Empirical research has reached the puzzling conclusion that stronger patents do little or nothing to encourage innovation.
[19]
(PDF) A Model of Discovery - ResearchGate
Aug 8, 2025 · PDF | On Feb 20, 2009, Michele Boldrin and others published A Model ... This paper develops a mathematical model of innovation in technology ...
[20]
The Case against Patents - American Economic Association
May 6, 2013 · The case against patents can be summarized briefly: there is no empirical evidence that they serve to increase innovation and productivity.
[21]
[PDF] The Case Against Patents - Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
Patents lack evidence of increasing innovation, have negative consequences, and create monopolies that reduce competition and increase rent-seeking.
[22]
Michele Boldrin on Intellectual Property - Econlib
May 18, 2009 · Boldrin argues that copyright and patent are used by the politically powerful to maintain monopoly profits. He argues that the incentive effects ...
[23]
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It is common to argue that intellectual property in the form of copyright and patent is necessary for the innovation and creation of ideas and inventions ...
[24]
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Mar 5, 2009 · The authors argue that license fees, regulations and patents are now so misused that they drive up the cost of creation and slow down the rate ...
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[PDF] The Case Against Patents - Gabriel Zucman
Landes and Posner (2004) point out that there is an “ideological” Page 15 Miche le Boldrin and David K. Levine 17 argument in support of stronger patent rights ...
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[PDF] Against Intellectual Monopoly (PDF) - Satoshi Nakamoto Institute
Ultimately no academic work can do more than scratch the surface of the first-mover advantage: it is limited only by human ingenuity, an area in which ...
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Come nasce un partito di “estremo centro” - Pagella Politica
Oct 13, 2025 · Il coraggio dell'ovvio”. Boldrin non è nuovo alla politica attiva. Dopo un passato da comunista e una collaborazione con la Lega Nord, nel 2012 ...
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Liste e candidati - Italia Nord-orientale - Elezioni Europee
Scelta Civica - Centro Democratico - Fare. Candidato, Luogo di nascita, Data di nascita, Preferenze, Eletto. Michele Boldrin, Padova, 20/08/1957, 6.986. Marco ...
[29]
Monti vieta a Scelta Civica di Fare un'alleanza con Boldrin e Tabacci
Feb 8, 2014 · Nel complesso e ingarbugliato mondo liberale le scelte politiche sembrano finalmente iniziare a definirsi in ottica di elezioni europee.
[30]
Abano, nasce “ORA!”, il nuovo partito guidato da Michele Boldrin e ...
Oct 14, 2025 · Ad Abano nasce ufficialmente ORA!, il partito fondato dall'associazione Drin Drin. Segretario Michele Boldrin, presidente Alberto Forchielli ...
[31]
È nato il partito politico ORA
È nato il partito politico ORA. Michele Boldrin e Alberto Forchielli eletti Segretario e Presidente per rilanciare il Paese. Al congresso ...
[32]
ORA!, il nuovo partito liberista. "Compriamo quattro atomiche dal ...
Oct 8, 2025 · Nasce nel weekend, con tanto di congresso fondativo, il nuovo partito guidato dall'economista Boldrin e dall'imprenditore Alberto Forchielli ...<|control11|><|separator|>
[33]
Promises of Tax Cuts Popular With Italian Voters
Feb 20, 2013 · The economists who founded the party include Michele Boldrin of Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri; Sandro Brusco of Stony Brook ...
[34]
Fermare il declino dei fatti - Keynes blog
May 13, 2013 · Michele Boldrin è stato eletto nuovo presidente di “Fare per Fermare il declino”. Nonostante i suoi titoli di studio siano veri, i fatti che ...Missing: free market
[35]
John H. Cochrane discusses tariffs on Michele Boldrin's DRIN DRIN ...
Apr 24, 2025 · Rose‐Marie and Jack Anderson Senior Fellow, Hoover Institution, Stanford University; Adjunct Scholar, Cato Institute; blogger, ...
[36]
Ora! - Wikipedia
Ora! (stylized ORA!, English: Now!), previously named the Drin Drin movement, is a political party in Italy. Now! Ora! Secretary, Michele Boldrin.
[37]
Italy: liberal Drin Drin Movement (*) appears in a poll for the first time ...
Aug 29, 2025 · Founded by economist Michele Boldrin and entrepreneur Alberto Forchielli, the movement aims to become a political party by autumn 2025.Missing: involvement | Show results with:involvement
[38]
Michele Boldrin: “Il debito pubblico? Non ripaghiamolo, pensiamo ...
Jun 9, 2018 · Non c'è figura migliore di Michele Boldrin per fare un'analisi della situazione economica italiana e delle ricette proposte dal nuovo governo ...<|separator|>
[39]
Ma quale moltiplicatore: con la manovra del popolo non cresceremo ...
Oct 3, 2018 · Ma quale moltiplicatore: con la manovra del popolo non cresceremo mai. Michele Boldrin. Le folli idee nella manovra economica del Governo ...
[40]
Il male dell'Italia è il capitalismo? Analisi controcorrente degli ultimi ...
Dec 13, 2021 · Post di Michele Boldrin, Joseph Gibson Hoyt Distinguished Professor presso la Washington University di Saint Louis, e Matteo Fatale, master ...<|separator|>
[41]
Lavoro e produttività tra favole e mondo reale - ilSole24ORE
Aug 13, 2019 · L'economista Michele Boldrin e lo statistico dell'Ocse Thomas Manfredi confutano le tesi sulla produttività italiana sostenute da Marco ...
[42]
La retorica del capitalismo in crisi non va mai in crisi - Il Foglio
Sep 20, 2019 · ... Michele Boldrin, Washington University in St. Louis e Università Ca' Foscari, Venezia. Di più su questi argomenti: capitalismo · democrazia ...
[43]
La disuguaglianza? Sarà sempre più una questione di intelligenza
Jan 18, 2019 · Sarà sempre più una questione di intelligenza. Michele Boldrin. Con l'avanzare della tecnologia cresce la complessità. Che a sua volta esclude ...<|separator|>
[44]
Michele Boldrin - Il Fatto Quotidiano
Attualmente mi occupo di innovazione, banche e moneta, rivoluzione industriale e globalizzazione. Il miei due libri piu recenti sono: Against Intellectual ...
[45]
Michele Boldrin (@micheleboldrin) / Posts / X
Michele Boldrin✓. micheleboldrin. St. Louis, MO. 92009Posts. 3346Following.
[46]
Michele Boldrin on X: "We are not "liberal". At least not, not even ...
Aug 29, 2025 · Italy: liberal Drin Drin Movement (*) appears in a poll for the first time, with 0.7% in the latest BiDiMedia poll. Founded by economist ...
[47]
Michele Boldrin on X: "@abeltrami71 False. There was not only ...
Feb 1, 2023 · False. There was not only Bolsonaro and Trump. In fact, T&B became the only "visible" opposition to the folly because people like YOU ...
[48]
Michele Boldrin on X: "How does this person make money? Just ask ...
Feb 26, 2023 · How does this person make money? Just ask the question, it will lead you to the motives for the lies. Follow the money, nothing else.Missing: online platforms blog
[49]
noiseFromAmerika: Home
La ben nota battaglia di Michele Boldrin per "abolire il liceo classico", oltre che uno slogan ad effetto che però nasconde un ragionamento analitico…Chi siamo · Michele Boldrin · Covid_19 · Biblioteka
[50]
The debate with Bradford De Long - noiseFromAmerika
Mar 5, 2009 · 05/03/2009 Michele Boldrin. A few things I learned. The trip to UC Davis was worth the money, the time and the effort. Organization was ...
[51]
Acknowledgements and final speech by Michele Boldrin - YouTube
May 19, 2025 · Evento completo: https://youtu.be/nVI5wwZif7A Secondo canale: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxLAB6L9QNQZTu_lVfG9biA Il 12 aprile 2025 si ...Missing: presence | Show results with:presence
[52]
Michele Boldrin - X
Aug 17, 2024 · Michele Boldrin · @micheleboldrin. This does not make your economic plans either meaningful or useful to the middle class. They are incoherent ...
[53]
Europe Elects - X
Aug 29, 2025 · Italy: liberal Drin Drin Movement (*) appears in a poll for the first time, with 0.7% in the latest BiDiMedia poll.
[54]
A World without Intellectual Property? A Review of Michele Boldrin ...
Michele Boldrin and David Levine conclude that patents and copyrights are not necessary to provide protection for either innovation or creative expression and ...
[55]
A Critical Analysis of Against Intellectual Monopoly
Sep 30, 2018 · Against Intellectual Monopoly by Boldrin and Levine (“B&L”) makes the case that intellectual property does not promote innovation or lead to greater economic ...
[56]
A critical review of against intellectual monopoly
Oct 6, 2010 · Against Intellectual Monopoly, by Michele Boldrin and David Levine (2007), is a coherent, well-written, and persuasive argument against ...Missing: key | Show results with:key
[57]
Boldrin and Levine Respond to Critics of their "Against Intellectual ...
May 20, 2011 · In their new paper, they present both theory and empirics supporting their core claim that the costs of intellectual property protection (i.e ...
[58]
Boldrin & Mosler - Debate on MMT - YouTube
Oct 25, 2019 · Michele ha provato a dibattere di MMT con il guru della setta, tal Warren Mosler. Ringraziamo i suoi giovani collaboratori per lo sforzo e ...
[59]
There is no such thing as a free lunch - Bill Mitchell
Dec 8, 2020 · ... Modern Monetary Theory (MMT). There have been a few critiques in the ... Michele Boldrin where the latter was trying to dismiss MMT.Missing: criticism | Show results with:criticism
[60]
Boldrin & Mosler - Debate on MMT... it ends sadly after Boldrin ...
@13:03: Michele goes on to say that you can borrow to pay taxes, but is ignoring that that borrowing is in money that is authorized to be created by the US ...
[61]
Critiche alla MMT | CRISTIAN MINERVA
MICHELE BOLDRIN (nel 2020): “SE LA MONETA FOSSE EMESSA DIRETTAMENTE DALLO STATO PER FINANZIARE LA SPESA PUBBLICA NON SAREBBE ACCETTATA DA NESSUNO PERCHE' NON ...
[62]
La teoria economica radicale secondo cui i governi hanno soldi all ...
Mar 13, 2018 · Per alcuni economisti come Michele Boldrin, “la MMT è una di quelle strane interpretazioni del sistema economiche che diventano di moda ...Missing: critiche monetaria
[63]
Introduction to Monetary Theory - Lecture 1.1 - YouTube
Jun 26, 2018 · Introduction to Monetary Theory - Lecture 1.2. Michele Boldrin · 3.7K views ; The Rise of the Thielverse & the Surveillance State (w/ Whitney Webb) ...Missing: MMT | Show results with:MMT