Jeanna Smialek covers the Federal Reserve and the economy for The New York Times, and joins Macro Musings to recap and summarize the highs and lows of US monetary policy during 2020. Specifically, David and Jeanna discuss the recent histories of Federal Reserve rate hikes and the persistence of low inflation, the nascent optimism about the economy at the start of 2020, the Fed’s policy response to COVID, and what lessons the Fed will be taking into the future.   Transcript for the episode can be found here: https://www.mercatus.org/bridge/tags/macro-musings   Jeanna’s Twitter: @jeannasmialek Jeanna’s New York Times archive: https://www.nytimes.com/by/jeanna-smialek   Related Links:   *Janet Yellen's Lift Off (CMFA Working Paper No. 001)* by George Selgin https://www.alt-m.org/2020/12/04/janet-yellens-lift-off-cmfa-working-paper-no-001/   *Measuring the Natural Rate of Interest: International Trends and Determinants* by Kathryn Holston and Thomas Laubach https://www.frbsf.org/economic-research/files/wp2016-11.pdf   David’s Twitter: @DavidBeckworth David’s blog: http://macromarketmusings.blogspot.com/