At the present time, there seems to be a large and growing constituency for holding down the deficit, but I sense less appetite to do what is required to achieve that outcome. Reestablishing budget balance will require discipline on both revenue and spending actions, but restraint on spending may prove the more difficult.
Nevertheless, I am paying close attention to the possibility of behavioral changes within firms and households drawn from the experience of the pandemic altering people's price perception, thereby changing firms' wage setting in a way that could lead to wage increases. Although COVID-19 will subside eventually, it is difficult for the time being to imagine the virus being eradicated.