The Golden Ladder

“My office at Cato looks out on K Street. If I chance to look in its direction-I try not to-I am reminded with pain of the ladder-pulling-up in which it specializes. Tony Cornyn has written the book that explains why.”

-Deirdre N. McCloskey, Distinguished Professor Emerita of economics, history, English, and communication at University of Illinois at Chicago

“The Golden Ladder builds a case as vivid as it is provocative: inequality isn’t one problem-it’s two. Worse, we’ve been fighting the wrong version for sixty years. Sweeping through the Medici, the Dutch masters, Adam Smith, and Elon Musk with equal ease, Cornyn is a great storyteller channeling a serious thinker. The Golden Ladder doesn’t just challenge how you think about wealth and opportunity-it hands you a sharper, more honest set of questions to ask. A genuinely fresh, fearless, and deeply readable book.”

-Michael C. Munger, professor of political science and economics at Duke University

“The Golden Ladder makes a compelling case that the wealth that endures is the wealth invested in people. Cornyn’s framework-rooted in history and economic research-resonates deeply with everything the human capital community has learned about what actually drives long-term prosperity.”

-Rob Dugger, Co-founder of ReadyNation and co-director at Global Working Group on Human Capital and Economic Opportunity

“Anthony Cornyn’s improbable defense of inequality couldn’t be better timed.”

-Marc Levinson, finance and economics editor of The Economist in London, journalist, economist, and author

“Extraordinary…At a time when progressive economic thinking decries growing wealth inequality, Tony Cornyn asserts that inequality is not the right problem to focus on. Rather, we should ensure that the bottom rungs of the ladder remain intact, offering opportunity to society’s most disenfranchised. Lucid, engaging, packed with fascinating facts and illustrative examples-this is thinking outside the box at its best. A significant work for our times destined to find a vast following. I give it my highest endorsement.”

-J. Andrew Spindler, President & CEO, Financial Services Volunteer Corps, New York

“Wealth inequity is ubiquitous. It is the root cause of our social and economic dysfunction. Yet it goes on and on unaddressed. Wealth inequity is also why our politics is so tempest-tossed.

Along comes Anthony Cornyn to (paraphrasing Emma Lazarus) lift up his lamp beside The Golden Ladder. The book tackles the issue of wealth inequity from a cause-and-effect standpoint…not from the time-worn Blue vs. Red perspective.

In this season of politics and in political seasons to come, may Cornyn’s sound recommendations form the basis for finally addressing this persistent issue.”

-Cornelius Hurley, faculty member at Boston University School of Law, former official, and Federal Reserve Director

“Most economists approach inequality with either cheerleading or grievance. Anthony Cornyn brings a Federal Reserve officer’s precision instead. The Golden Ladder is rigorous, readable, and long overdue.”

-Donald Billings, CFA, former Federal Reserve and RTC Officer, bank advisor, and board member

Anthony Cornyn helped write the rules of modern banking. One of the youngest officers at the Federal Reserve Board under Paul Volcker, he spent seventeen years there, leading the Financial Analysis and Special Studies Section. He helped develop the first international risk-based capital standards. He later advised governments in Jordan,

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