Tra tecnica e politica: Antonio Pesenti e il debito pubblico (1944-1963) (Between technique and politics: Antonio Pesenti and public debt (1944-63))

This work aims at giving an in-depth synthesis on Antonio Pesenti’s view on public debt policies over the years of his most fervent institutional activity (1944-1963). Some evidences both from bibliographical and archival sources as well as from records of his institutional responsibilities have highlighted two periods as particularly significant with regard to the topic of this article: the period when he was in government coalition (1944-1947), and the period when he was a member of the opposition (1947-1963). Both periods were marked by his strong political creed, which entailed a general caution with regard to public debt. But the first period was characterized by a greater willingness toward public loans than the second one. As a consequence, we argue that Pesenti approached the topic of public debt much more as a politician and technician than as an economist, although not overlooking his theoretical position