President George W. Bush speaks during the swearing-in ceremony for Dr. Ben Bernanke as the Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors in the Dwight D. Eisenhower Executive Office Building Tuesday, June 21, 2005. White House photo by Paul Morse
Posted on 01/31/2006 12:01:02 PM PST by areafiftyone
WASHINGTON — The Senate on Tuesday approved the nomination of Ben Bernanke to be the next chairman of the Federal Reserve, the most influential economic policy job in the world.
Bernanke, 52, was cleared on a voice vote after a short debate in the chamber amid strong bipartisan support.
He succeeds Alan Greenspan, 79, who retires Tuesday after 18 1/2 years, making him the second-longest serving chairman at the central bank.
"We believe that Dr. Bernanke will serve this country well at the helm of the Federal Reserve," said Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., in remarks on the Senate floor before the vote.
Sen. Paul Sarbanes, D-Md., observed: "There's no question about Dr. Bernanke's qualifications for the position ... He commands great respect from his peers in the profession and I think great respect from all who have come in contact with him."
Sen. Jim Bunning, R-Ky., was the only senator requesting to be recorded as voting against the nomination. Bunning cited concerns that Bernanke would be too much in Greenspan's mold. "Sadly, I have not seen very much evidence of him being independent," Bunning said.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
He has killed every economic recovery since he became Fed Chair. Overrated to the max.
"fewer than 20 senators were there for the voice vote"
That's because the 42 dem senators were already down at the "Cock and Bull" bar slugging back the liquor and trying to forget all the money they lost when the NOW and NARAL group phoned in their anger over the Alito loss!
President George W. Bush speaks during the swearing-in ceremony for Dr. Ben Bernanke as the Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors in the Dwight D. Eisenhower Executive Office Building Tuesday, June 21, 2005. White House photo by Paul Morse
What? I thought Federal Express was part of the government too! LOL.
It is interesting that the "private" nature of the Federal Reserve is not well-known.
That's right, an enemy.
Hope this one is better!I am glad to see the"old rate hiker"go!The economy is doing better because it is measured by how MUCH MORE the wealthy have.When the rates go up only the little guy pays and keeps on nurishing himself with bread and water.
Neither can Alito.
-PJ
Couldn't help but notice the resemblance between Bernanke and Greenspan. Bernanke with a beard looks like a younger Greenspan. Anybody else notice the uncanny resemblance?
>As long as he is not a Greenspan clone, I'm for him.
Same here.
Good riddance to Greenspan.
There is hundreds of years of history that tells where this ends. It has been tried many times in many places. But the results are always the same. It's sure not going to be fun to be the head of the FED when the hens come home to roost.
Somehow ending the reporting of M3 says they know they have huge problems.
Have the moonbats come out with anything on this guy, like, how he is part of the neo-fascist movement of the Republican party?
So far not much about him. I am surprised but they don't seem to care. They are still licking their Alito Wounds.
I'm surprised that so many here have such an affinity for inflation.
As far as being an "enemy" of the market, the NASDAQ enjoyed an average annual return of nearly 30% while suffering with it's "enemy" at the Fed's helm.
Has Greenspan made some mistakes? Of course. The biggest one was in failing to see the impact that productivity gains would have on the sustainable rate of non-inflationary growth. He clearly missed the boat on that account. Overall though, he did a magnificient job, both in terms of containing inflation as well as strengthening the banking industry. Compared to other Fed Chairmen, he clearly stands out as a success.
I don't think they are that much alike. He has a much rounder face than Greenspan.
I thought they did this weeks ago. Cutting it a bit short, aren't they, with Greenspan stepping down today?
Bernanke believes in a fair-valued U.S. Dollar (rather than the currently propped-up Dollar)...one of those rare positions on which both labor (i.e. unions) and management (i.e. companies) agree.
A lower Dollar means fewer imports, more exports.
This was an easy call.
What does that mean? I'm all in favor of monetary policy that creates a stable dollar. Where do I fit in here?
What kind of monetary policy does one pursue if one wants a "fair valued dollar"? What kind of monetary policy creates a "propped up dollar"?
I admit I preferred microeconomics over macroeconomics, but the economics terms you use are new to me.
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