I always laugh when I see stories asking how many jobs the president has created. This language is common in the news media, as well as in the boasts of certain presidents. To be fair, most people understand the phrase as a shorthand for how much employment growth there was during a president’s time on the job. But many people …

The appointment of Italy’s new central bank governor has turned into a depressing power struggle. But for all the elements that make this a uniquely Italian affair, it also raises broader questions about how a country should balance independence and accountability in the event of a possible central bank failure. Matteo Renzi, the former prime minister and leader of the …

Nobody was surprised that the European Union’s leaders refused to move the Brexit talks forward at last week’s summit. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and European Council President Donald Tusk talked of progress and suggested there’d be more at the next gathering in December, but this speck of encouragement shouldn’t obscure the bigger picture. The process is moving too slowly, and …