Bringing Balance Back with Sec. Janet Yellen and Douglas Holtz-Eakin

With the United States federal debt topping $37 trillion and budget deficits projected to reach $2.5 trillion by 2035, the Congressional Budget Office projects that the national debt remains on an unsustainable upward trajectory. In the late 90's during the Clinton administration, U.S. politicians were able to secure bipartisan legislation that not only balanced the budget, but also created a surplus. Could this example of bipartisan budgeting provide a road map for the fiscal challenges of today?

Join us on Monday, September 29 at 6 p.m. CT for an important and timely conversation with three experts on the U.S. budget:

🔹 Former Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen, who served as Chair of the Council of Economic Advisors during the Clinton administration

🔹 Former Director of the Congressional Budget Office Douglas Holtz-Eakin, who served as Chief Economist of the President’s Council of Economic Advisers in the George W. Bush administration

🔹 Current President of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget Maya MacGuineas

In a conversation moderated by MacGuineas, Yellen and Holtz-Eakin will discuss current U.S. economic conditions and the urgent need for bipartisan action to improve the country’s fiscal outlook. They will explore past examples of fiscal reform in the U.S., including the Clinton administration’s successful efforts to reduce deficits and expand economic opportunity.

During President Clinton's time in office, the United States saw a significant reduction in the budget deficit, eventually leading to a surplus for the first time in a generation. His administration achieved this through policies like spending cuts, targeted tax increases, the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993, and the landmark Balanced Budget Act of 1997, a milestone in reducing the federal deficit and a significant achievement in bipartisan cooperation.

The program will be available on our YouTube channel the following day.

ASL interpretation is available during our events.

This program is presented by the Clinton Presidential Center and the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.

Janet L. Yellen served as the 78th U.S. Secretary of the Treasury from 2021 to 2025. She previously held several senior roles at the Federal Reserve, including Chair (2014–2018), Vice Chair (2010–2014), and President of the San Francisco Fed (2004–2010). From 1994 to 1997, she was a member of the Fed Board before serving as Chair of the President’s Council of Economic Advisers under President Clinton.

Secretary Yellen began her academic career at Harvard and later taught at the London School of Economics before joining the University of California, Berkeley in 1980, where she is now professor emeritus. She holds a BA from Brown and a PhD in economics from Yale. Currently a Distinguished Fellow at the Brookings Institution, she is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and has served as President of both the American Economic Association and the Western Economic Association.

Douglas Holtz-Eakin is an economist and public policy expert who currently serves as President of the American Action Forum. He previously served as Director of the Congressional Budget Office from 2003 to 2005, where he was responsible for producing independent, nonpartisan economic and budgetary analysis for Congress. Holtz-Eakin has also held senior positions on several national policy commissions and served as Chief Economist of the President’s Council of Economic Advisers under President George W. Bush.

Earlier in his career, Holtz-Eakin was a professor of economics at Syracuse University and has published widely on topics ranging from tax policy and health care to immigration and fiscal reform. In 2008, he was the chief economic policy advisor to Senator John McCain’s presidential campaign. Holtz-Eakin frequently testifies before Congress and appears in major media outlets as a commentator on economic and fiscal issues. He holds a PhD in economics from Princeton University.

Maya MacGuineas is the president of the bipartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. Her areas of expertise include budget, tax, and economic policy. As a leading budget expert and a political independent, she works closely with members of both parties and serves as a trusted resource on Capitol Hill. MacGuineas testifies regularly before Congress and has published broadly, including in The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Financial Times, The Atlantic, and numerous other outlets. She also appears regularly as a commentator on television. 

MacGuineas oversees a number of the Committee’s projects, including FixUS, a project seeking to better understand the root causes of our nation’s growing divisions and deteriorating political system; T.E.C,. which focuses on technology, the economy, and capitalism; and the Fiscal Security Project. 

Previously, MacGuineas worked at the Brookings Institution and on Wall Street, and in the spring of 2009, she did a stint on The Washington Post editorial board, covering economic and fiscal policy. MacGuineas serves on a number of boards and is a native Washingtonian. 

Also check out other Business events in Little Rock, Health & Wellness events in Little Rock, Arts events in Little Rock.