Central banks are independent from politics, but are central bankers? In other words, does the Fed do more to juice the economy when one party controls the White House than the other?
Well let's take a closer look!
Let's consider the evidence. Rather incredibly, interest rates have fallen over the course of every Republican term and risen over the course of every Democratic term ever since the Fed became independent in 1951, excluding Dwight Eisenhower and Barack Obama, as the chart below shows. That's a hell of a coincidence.
The FRB sure looks like a "conditional inflation hawk" -- that is, it cares about inflation more during Democratic administrations and about helping the incumbent win reelection during Republican administrations. The idea here is central bankers prefer Republican policies, so they aren't quite as vigilant about inflation right before Republican presidents face reelection. In other words, the Fed keeps interest rates lower than they should for Republicans. The numbers seem to bear this out.
Just askin' for a friend!