The Great Reversal

[A] superbly argued and important book. America is no longer the home of the free-market economyThe great obstacle to action in the U.S. is the pervasive role of money in politics. The results are the twin evils of oligopoly and oligarchyDonald Trump is in so many ways a product of the defective capitalism described in The Great Reversal. What the U.S. needs, instead, is another Teddy Roosevelt and his energetic trust-busting. Is that still imaginable? All believers in the virtues of competitive capitalism must hope so. -- Martin Wolf * Financial Times * A fascinating case study of rising corporate concentration and why this reflects not just impersonal economic forces but political choices [Philippon] concludes competition has indeed declined to the detriment of consumers. His novel contribution, though, is to contrast this with the experience of Europe Where the U.S. was once the worlds teacher, it may be time to be the pupil. -- Greg Ip * Wall Street Journal * FascinatingIn one industry after another, [Philippon] writes, a few companies have grown so large that they have the power to keep prices high and wages low. Its great for those corporationsand bad for almost everyone elseToo often, both parties are still confusing the interests of big business with the national interest. And American families are paying the price. -- David Leonhardt * New York Times * Philippon sees todays Europe, ironically the home of government-driven market intervention, as the place that has figured out how to set markets free by spurring competitiveness and thus keeping services up and prices downThe Great Reversal argues that the United States has much to gain by reforming how domestic markets work but also much to regaina vitality that has been lost since the Reagan years. We dont know if Philippon is a fan of Donald Trump, but his analysis points to one way of making America great again: restoring our free-market competitiveness. -- Arthur Herman * Wall Street Journal * [A] primer on the recent woes of the U.S. economyIt attributes these troubling developments to a decline in competition that has been brought about in large part by the rise of very powerful technology companies and above all by the lack of enforcement of antitrust policies. Philippon also points to the damaging role of politicians who protect the interests of their wealthy donors by sponsoring and creating loopholes in tax and regulatory laws. -- Richard N. Cooper * Foreign Affairs * Examines money in politics, and carefully knocks down tendentious arguments that such behavior does not simply reflect the rich purchasing policy outcomes that benefit themselvesSome of Philippons findings are eye-popping. -- Ryan Cooper * American Prospect * In this seminal book, economist Philippon uses detailed evidence to argue that, far from being the home of free-market competition, the U.S. today has less competition than the much-maligned EU, particularly in its product markets, which are riddled with monopoly and monopsony. This is not the result of natural forces, but of deliberate policy. Declining competition has raised profits, depressed wages, weakened investment and undermined productivity growth. The U.S. needs a reinvigoration of antitrust. * Financial Times * A compelling read for those interested in the dynamics of the overall innovation economy or the political debate over antitrust and Big TechA timely analysis of the weakening of Americas regulatory regime for protecting free market competition. -- Eric Peckham * TechCrunch * The Great Reversal is a must-read for anyone who cares about the single most important issue of our timethe growing concentration of economic and political power in the hands of too few corporations and individuals. Philippon shows us that America is no longer the home of free markets, and Old Europe is a lot more competitive than we think. Data-driven, readable economic myth-busting at its best.

Thomas Philippon is the Max L. Heine Professor of Finance at the Stern School of Business, New York University. He was named one of the top 25 economists under 45 by the IMF and won the Berncer Prize for Best European Economist. He currently serves as an academic advisor to the Financial Stability Board and to the Hong Kong Institute for Monetary and Financial Research. He was previously an advisor to the New York Federal Reserve Bank and a board member of the French prudential regulatory authority.