Welcome to a special coronavirus edition of Uncommon Knowledge with Peter Robinson. I'm Peter Robinson. We're

trying something different because we have no choice. We're using the online

technology to record interviews.

In the other box is my friend and colleague

at the Hoover Institution, John Taylor,

who is a just a remarkably eminent economist.

John served on the Council of Economic Advisors

under President Ford as a member of the Council

of Economic Advisors under President George H. W. Bush and during the presidency of George W. Bush

as Undersecretary of the Treasury for International Affairs,

he has published academic papers that are endless and is the author of what is known as the Taylor rule, which is a

sophisticated and elegant but pretty accessible rule for when the Federal

Reserve ought to expand the money supply and when it ought not to do so.

But John is also, despite that tremendous eminence and the long list of credentials,

here at Stanford he may be best known and certainly best loved for teaching an introductory freshman course in economics

called Economics 101 and my in economics 101. And my notion here, my request to John was if he could simply

take me as a layman, as a particularly slow student through coronavirus economics 101.

John, thanks for taking the time to join us.

You're so kind, Peter.

It's great to be with you as always.

I should note that we only live two-tenths of a mile apart, but we're here in Northern California. We're in one of the six counties that's pretty seriously locked down.

That's true. We're both doing this from our home.

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