The Value of the Dollar Should Be Set by Market Forces, and a Weak Dollar Is Not in America's Interest

I think that Treasury Secretary Paulson's all-purpose dollar statement is just fine. Greg Mankiw worries that it might say too much:

Washington Wire: Can You Translate That Into Chinese?: Noting new Treasury Secretary Paulson's attempt to devise a standing statement on the U.S. dollar, former Bush economics adviser Greg Mankiw says the press corps' attempts to get Treasury secretaries to say something newsworthy about the currency is "one of the more bizarre rituals in Washington."

The Treasury Secretary's goal is to say something that makes him look smart and authoritative without actually saying anything substantive which might cause market volatility," Mankiw, now back at Harvard, writes on his blog.

Mankiw's suggestion: "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!"