From (1) Reich and Prussian Minister of Economics and General Plenipotentiary (1937), and (2) President of the Reichsbank (1939) (discussion, Kopper (1998)). While it’s an inexact analogy, it’s of interest to recall it was Hermann Göring. I thought of this when I saw Russell Vought on TV today:
Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought vowed Friday to press an investigation into renovations at the Federal Reserve building, which he called a “palace” where costs are running amok.
A great line from the Wikipedia entry on Schacht:
[Schacht] had grown increasingly dissatisfied with Göring’s near-total ignorance of economics, and was also concerned that Germany was coming close to bankruptcy.
The main points of disagreement were the Goering’s demand for rearmament despite fiscal strains, aiming for autarky/self-reliance, and dismissal of concerns about deficit spending. Sounds familiar to me.
<small>* Aside: Walther Funk succeeded Schlacht as President of the Reichsbank. I spent half a year living in Funk’s house, on the Wannsee, currently the home of the American Academy in Berlin (as a guest of my wife, a fellow there).</small>