Fed Chairman Bernanke To Be Re-Appointed

Photograph of Fed Chairman Bernanke and President Obama in Martha's Vineyard by Stephan Savoia/AP

President Obama will re-appoint Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke, the Wall Street Journal reports, "opting for continuity in U.S. economic policy despite criticism in Congress of the low-key central banker's frantic efforts to rescue the financial system." White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel said, "The president thinks that Ben’s done a great job as Fed chairman, that he has helped the economy through one of the worst experiences since the Great Depression and that he has essentially been pulling the economy back from the brink of what would have been the second Great Depression."

Another positive for Bernanke—investors and economists like him and may feel comforted he's staying on. The NY Times reports, "Most economists now predict that the United States recession either has already ended or is about to end very soon. Although unemployment is 9.4 percent, higher than at any time since the early 1980s, a wide array of indicators suggest that the economy has hit bottom and is about to begin a slow if painful recovery." Senator Christopher Dodd (D-Connecticut) said in spite of his "serious differences with the Federal Reserve... I think reappointing Chairman Bernanke is probably the right choice," but promised a "thorough" confirmation hearing.

Obama made the announcement from his vacation in Martha's Vineyard (Bernanke will be there) and his prepared remarks include, "As an expert on the causes of the Great Depression, I’m sure Ben never imagined that he would be part of a team responsible for preventing another. But because of his background, his temperament, his courage, and his creativity, that’s exactly what he has helped to achieve."

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By Jen Chung in News on August 25, 2009 9:12 AM

Comments [rss]

Snoopy

What this country needs is a new idea person. Someone with the vision of Hitler.

JLRodP

inform yourself at www.lewrockwell.com

felixthecat2

I don't understand why people keep talking about socialism when there has been very little regulation in the financial market after the bail out. Affordable and Accessible Healthcare is not socialism. Damn Faux News.

Matt Joyce

Well it could be because the US government now has a controlling interest in general motors and AIG. All your need to do is name change the companies to "The People's Motors" and "The People's Insurance" and the movement to state owned enterprise would be complete. That would be a key attribute of socialism. Combined with the democratic desire for federal micromanagement and increased involvement in the market at large heralds are very definite pro-socialist post-lenin communist movement. One might argue that Obama is more of a communist than Trotsky and they might be right. Mind you one could equally argue Trotsky wasn't a communist at all. So I'm really just rambling at this point.

corbindallas

Like bush allowed 9/11 to attack iraq. Sure. Always the poor yelling about socialism.

Matt Joyce

there you guy bringing class into it again!

ides_of_march

The puppet masters DO NOT want to stabilize the economy. This administration's job is to deliberately trash the economy in order to provide an excuse for imposing socialism.

rhonda718

Right.. and Bush was behind 9/11 so he had reason to clamp down on civil liberties and go to war with the Iraq, right?

Just goes to prove... both sides have their crazies...