As the nation reflected earlier this month on the life, national service and lasting achievements of
President Gerald R. Ford, we could not help but recall the short lived and largely ineffective Whip Inflation Now campaign of 1974. Th is campaign, allegedly supported by Ford’s Council of Economic Advisors and its Chairman Alan Greenspan, was according to Wikipedia “…an attempt to spur a grassroots movement to combat inflation by encouraging personal savings and disciplined spending habits in combination with public measures….” As many will remember, WIN buttons were produced to be worn proudly by those dedicated to the fight against inflation. It is important also to remember that, while the WIN campaign was largely ridiculed at the time, inflation in 1974 was running at a rate of over 12%, and the stock market was in the midst of a two year decline of over 40%. Following the WIN campaign and perhaps only coincidently, 1975 and 1976 saw a recovery in stocks of 37% and 23% respectively, and a decline in the rate of inflation to 7% in 1975 and 5% in 1976. To our knowledge, there have been no economists or market historians who have connected the market’s recovery to the WIN campaign. Th ere have been many however, who cite Alan Greenspan’s experience serving President Ford during those troubled economic times as critical in shaping his future inflation fighting policies.

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