589–610; and Alberto Alesina (1987), “Macroeconomic Policy in a TwoParty System as a Repeated Game,” Quarterly Journal of Economics, vol. 102 (August), pp. 651–78. 12 See Kenneth Rogoff (1985), “The Optimal Degree of Commitment to an Intermediate Monetary Target,” Quarterly Journal of Economics, vol. 100 (November), pp.
1169–89; and Christopher J. Waller (1989), “Monetary Policy Games and Central Bank Politics,” Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, vol. 21 (November), pp. 422–31. 11  -7central bankers long terms and prohibiting removal from office for political reasons. This literature provides the theoretical foundations for central bank independence and the importance of central bank credibility. A look across countries is instructive.