Robert Patrick Murphy (born May 23, 1976) is an American economist. Murphy is Research Assistant Professor with the Free Market Institute at

Texas Tech University Texas Tech University (Texas Tech, Tech, or TTU) is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas. Established on , and called Texas Technological College until 1969, it is the main institution of the five-institution Texas Tech University Sy ...

. He has been affiliated with Laffer Associates, the

Pacific Research Institute The Pacific Research Institute for Public Policy (PRI) is a California-based free-market think tank which promotes "the principles of individual freedom and personal responsibility" through policies that emphasize a free economy, private initiat ...

, the

Institute for Energy Research The Institute for Energy Research (IER) is a Washington, D.C.-based non-profit organization that, according to itself, conducts research and analysis on the functions, operations, and government regulation of global energy markets. IER maintains ...

(IER), the

Independent Institute The Independent Institute is an American libertarian think tank based in Oakland, California. Founded in 1986 by David J. Theroux, the institute focuses on political, social, economic, legal, environmental, and foreign policy issues. It has more ...

, the

Ludwig von Mises Institute Ludwig von Mises Institute for Austrian Economics, or Mises Institute, is a libertarian nonprofit think tank headquartered in Auburn, Alabama, United States. It is named after the Austrian School economist Ludwig von Mises (1881–1973). It ...

, and the

Fraser Institute The Fraser Institute is a libertarian-conservative Canadian public policy think tank and registered charity. The institute describes itself as independent and non-partisan. It is headquartered in Vancouver, with additional offices in Calgary, T ...

Education

Murphy received a BA in economics at Hillsdale College in 1998 and a Ph.D. in economics at

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, th ...

in 2003.

Career

Murphy is Research Assistant Professor with the Free Market Institute at Texas Tech University. He has been a visiting Assistant Professor at Hillsdale College, and a visiting scholar at New York University. He has been affiliated with Laffer Associates, the Pacific Research Institute, the

(IER) as the senior economist focusing on climate change,Robert P. Murphy profile
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in Canada. He is the president of Consulting By RPM. In September 2021 Murphy was ranked as the 11th most influential person in economics by Academic Influence which uses "artificial intelligence to measure impact by academics and institutions." Murphy has written books such as ''Choice: Cooperation, Enterprise, and Human Action'' (Independent Institute, 2015), ''Primal Prescription'' with Doug McGuff, MD regarding healthcare in the United States, and ''Lessons for the Young Economist'' (Mises Institute 2010). He has written study guides to works of

Ludwig von Mises Ludwig Heinrich Edler von Mises (; 29 September 1881 – 10 October 1973) was an Austrian School economist, historian, logician, and Sociology, sociologist. Mises wrote and lectured extensively on the societal contributions of classical liberali ...

and

Murray Rothbard Murray Newton Rothbard (; March 2, 1926 – January 7, 1995) was an American economist of the Austrian School, economic historian, political theorist, and activist. Rothbard was a central figure in the 20th-century American libertarian ...

. Murphy authored the 2007 book '' The Politically Incorrect Guide to Capitalism''. Murphy's book, ''The Politically Incorrect Guide to the Great Depression and the New Deal'', published in 2009, blamed the Depression on government policies. Additionally, Murphy has written for ''

The Washington Times ''The Washington Times'' is an American conservative daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., that covers general interest topics with a particular emphasis on national politics. Its broadsheet daily edition is distributed throughou ...

'', ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also r ...

'' and ''

Barron's Magazine ''Barron's'' is an American weekly magazine/newspaper published by Dow Jones & Company, a division of News Corp. Founded in 1921 by Clarence W. Barron (1855–1928) as a sister publication to ''The Wall Street Journal'', ''Barron's'' covers U ...

''. Murphy's writings have also been published in '' The American Journal of Economics and Sociology'', ''

The Review of Austrian Economics ''The Review of Austrian Economics'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal published by Springer Science+Business Media. It was established by Murray Rothbard, who edited ten volumes between 1987 and 1997. After his death, Walter Block, Hans-Hermann ...

'', the ''

Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics The ''Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal covering heterodox economics published by the Ludwig von Mises Institute.Lee, Frederic S., and Cronin, Bruce C. (2010)"Research Quality Rankings of Hete ...

'' and the '' Journal of Private Enterprise''. He has written for ''

The Freeman ''The Freeman'' (formerly published as ''The Freeman: Ideas on Liberty'' or ''Ideas on Liberty'') was an American libertarian magazine, formerly published by the Foundation for Economic Education (FEE). It was founded in 1950 by John Chamberl ...

'', ''

The American Conservative ''The American Conservative'' (''TAC'') is a magazine published by the American Ideas Institute which was founded in 2002. Originally published twice a month, it was reduced to monthly publication in August 2009, and since February 2013, it has ...

,''

LewRockwell.com Llewellyn Harrison Rockwell Jr. (born July 1, 1944) is an American author, editor, and political consultant. A libertarian and a self-professed anarcho-capitalist, he founded and is the chairman of the Mises Institute, a non-profit dedicated to ...

Townhall.com Townhall is an American politically conservative website, print magazine and radio news service. Previously published by The Heritage Foundation, it is now owned and operated by Salem Communications. The website features more than 80 columns (b ...

and

Antiwar.com Antiwar.com is a website that describes itself as devoted to non-interventionism and as opposing imperialism and war. It is a project of the Randolph Bourne Institute. The website states that it is "fighting the next information war”. Histor ...

. Murphy was ranked as the 14th most influential economist since 1990 by ''Academic Influence''.

Erroneous inflation predictions

Murphy has been criticized by economists

Brad DeLong James Bradford "Brad" DeLong (born June 24, 1960) is an economic historian who is a professor of economics at the University of California, Berkeley. DeLong served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Treasury in the Clin ...

and

Paul Krugman Paul Robin Krugman ( ; born February 28, 1953) is an American economist, who is Distinguished Professor of Economics at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, and a columnist for ''The New York Times''. In 2008, Krugman was ...

for predicting that the

quantitative easing Quantitative easing (QE) is a monetary policy action whereby a central bank purchases predetermined amounts of government bonds or other financial assets in order to stimulate economic activity. Quantitative easing is a novel form of monetary pol ...

practiced by the

Federal Reserve The Federal Reserve System (often shortened to the Federal Reserve, or simply the Fed) is the central banking system of the United States of America. It was created on December 23, 1913, with the enactment of the Federal Reserve Act, after a ...

in the late 2000s would create double-digit inflation and economic ruin by 2013, and notes that he lost the bet.Robert P. Murphy
"Killing the Currency"
,

, December 10, 2009. In 2013 Murphy challenged Krugman to a debate and unnamed supporters of Murphy promised to donate $100,000 to a charity if Krugman would debate Murphy on economic policy issues. A promotional website was established for the challenge. In response to a radio show caller, Krugman rejected the proposed debate, saying that the subject “is not something to be settled by public circuses" and added, "Why should I dignify that totally-wrong doctrine — that doctrine that's gotten everything wrong — by giving them a platform?", pointing to the erroneous inflation predictions.

Religious views

Murphy is a Christian, and has stated in his writings that "my ethical beliefs are informed by my Christian faith, and I am a firm believer in

natural law Natural law ( la, ius naturale, ''lex naturalis'') is a system of law based on a close observation of human nature, and based on values intrinsic to human nature that can be deduced and applied independently of positive law (the express enacte ...

Books

*
Chaos Theory
' (2002) – Two essays on anarchocapitalism; one discussing the production of defense services, and the other describing the provision of private criminal and civil justice. * '' The Politically Incorrect Guide to Capitalism'' (2007) – A volume in '' The Politically Incorrect Guide'' series published by

Regnery Publishing Regnery Publishing is a politically conservative book publisher based in Washington, D.C. The company was founded by Henry Regnery in 1947, and is now a division of radio broadcaster Salem Media Group. It is led by President & Publisher Thomas ...

. * ''The Politically Incorrect Guide to the Great Depression and the New Deal'' (2009). * ''How Privatized Banking Really Works – Integrating Austrian Economics with the Infinite Banking Concept'' (2010) co-written with L. Carlos Lara. * ''Lessons for the Young Economist'' (2010) – available a
Mises.org Library
an
Mises.org wiki

Economic Principles for Prosperity
(2014). Fraser Institute. Co-authored with Jason Clemens, Milagros Palacios, and Niels Velduis.
The Primal Prescription
(2015) – Co-authored with Dough McGuff, MD. The authors utilize their expertise in economics and medicine to examine America's health care system.
Choice: Cooperation, Enterprise, and Human Action
(July 1, 2015 – A concise retelling of the magnum opus of Ludwig Von Mises, ''Human Action''. *

Notes

References

External links

Robert P. Murphy website

Robert P. Murphy at Contra Krugman (podcast)
* Robert P. Murphy at

Profile
* Robert P. Murphy at Mises.org
Literature archives

Daily Article archivesFaculty Spotlight Interview: Robert Murphy
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Murphy, Robert P. 1976 births Living people 21st-century American economists 21st-century American historians 21st-century American male writers 21st-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century Christians American anarcho-capitalists American Christians American columnists American consultants American economics writers American libertarians American male non-fiction writers American political writers Austrian School economists Christian anarchists Christian libertarians Critics of neoconservatism Economists from New York (state) Hillsdale College alumni Hillsdale College faculty Historians from New York (state) Libertarian economists Libertarian historians Libertarian theorists Mackinac Center for Public Policy Mises Institute people New York University alumni Non-interventionism Scientists from New York City Writers from New York City