"the great depression, like most other periods of severe unemployment, was produced by government mismanagement rather than by any inherent instability of the private economy." - milton friedman the quote by milton friedman supports his belief that the federal government should a) decrease the role of the private economy. b) increase their participation in fiscal policy. c) increase their participation in monetary policy. d) decrease their participation in monetary policy.

D) decrease their participation in monetary policy.

Explanation:

The Great Depression had two main causes. The overproduction and expansion of unbridled credit by banks. The credit of an economy is regulated by the Government - currently by the Federal Reserve - which institutes monetary policy, which is the instrument that regulates the amount of money and credit available in the economy. Monetary policy can be used to induce warming or cooling of the economy through the interest rate and the open market. According to Friedman, the US government erred in conducting monetary policy by lowering the interest rate to a point that allowed banks to adopt risky lending practices. In Friedman's view, monetary policy can not be an instrument used by the government to stimulate the economy.