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27 Jul 2011 10:41

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Politics: Fed Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke stays out of debt ceiling debate

  • If you’re the Fed chairman, you’ve got to be above politics.
  • Sen. Jon Kyl • Offering a bit of unsolicited advice to our boy Ben Bernanke in the whole debt ceiling mess: Stay out of it, be above it, let the children fight over it. Which, let’s face it, is pretty much his only good option at this point. For what it’s worth, he’s done a good job of this so far: While he’s warned that the debt ceiling needs to go up, he’s stopped short of favoring any one way to do it, a response Barney Frank calls “appropriate.” Not that he’s above actions that raise the ire of the GOP — the Fed’s recent spate of bond purchases, $600 billion in all, have ticked off Republicans. But he hasn’t pissed ’em off too much lately. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

27 Apr 2011 17:38

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Politics: Bernanke takes dim view of Congress’ budget deal

  • The cuts that have been made so far don’t seem to us to have very significant consequences for short-term economic activity… so far I’ve not seen any fiscal changes that have really changed our near-term outlook.
  • Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke • Speaking at his press conference today, when asked by a reporter about the package of budget cuts congressional Democrats and Republicans agreed upon. Bernanke’s dim view of the package is very easy to understand, as the size of the cuts were incredibly overstated; taking the long-term value of the package (this year’s savings reportedly only amount to $353 million or so) as $38.5 billion, you’re still talking about chump change as far as the total deficit, estimated over $1.5 trillion, is concerned. Bernanke also said Standard & Poor’s downgrading America’s outlook rating isn’t surprising, because everyone knows the U.S. is on shaky fiscal ground, but that he hopes it will spur more action.  source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

27 Apr 2011 16:29

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Politics: Fed. Chairman Bernanke holds unprecedented press conference

  • Working the crowd: Bernanke told reporters that his decision to hold this first-ever event was part of his effort to increase transparency at the Federal Reserve. On the issues, though, Bernanke was less a revelatory messenger than that of a lot of news we sort of already knew — unemployment is high, inflation is a risk as always (though one he sought to downplay), the deficit is unsustainable, and the Fed will be broadly staying the course with its monetary policies. That said, we want to give him some credit. First, the Federal Reserve has been a very secretive organization throughout its life, and Bernanke’s effort in making himself more available is admirable. Second, that might be the best damn beard in all of central banking. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

09 Feb 2011 11:05

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Biz: Federal Reserve’s Ben Bernanke not happy about slow hiring pace

  • The job market has improved only slowly. … This gain was barely sufficient to accommodate the inflow of recent graduates and other new entrants into the labor force and, therefore, not enough to significantly erode the wide margin of slack that remains in our labor market.
  • Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke • Explaining, in front of the House Budget Committee, the issues he and others are having with the slow pace of the economic recovery. While things are recovering, job growth is way too slow for his comfort. In other news, Bernanke says that inflation is likely to stay low for the foreseeable future, and that the government needs to get the budget situation dealt with. “Creditors would never be willing to lend to a government with debt, relative to national income, that is rising without limit,” he says, suggesting that we could face an actual fiscal crisis if we don’t take heed. Great. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

20 Nov 2010 20:40

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Biz: Timothy Geithner to GOP: Don’t screw with us. You’ll regret it

  • It is very important to keep politics out of monetary policy. You want to be very careful not to take steps that hurt our credibility.
  • Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner • Telling Republicans in no uncertain terms to stay out of the Federal Reserve’s BIZ-NASS. As we noted last night, Republicans are coming down hard on the money people pretty heavily, with some threatening to strip the Fed of some of its rights. May we offer a suggestion here? How about the legislators stick to legislating and the Treasury sticks to the money stuff? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 2 Comments • Permalink

19 Nov 2010 21:45

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Biz: Federal Reserve taking it from all sides with stimulus plan

  • On its current economic trajectory, the United States runs the risk of seeing millions of workers unemployed or underemployed for many years. As a society, we should find that outcome unacceptable.
  • Federal Reserve Chief Ben Bernanke • Explaining why the much-maligned stimulus plan (which involves shoving $600 billion into the economy whether it likes it or not) is necessary to save the economy. Republicans and Tea Partiers claim that the plan could raise prices of essentials such as food. Internationally, there’s worries about the stimulus driving down the value of the dollar (thereby making exports to the U.S. more desirable). Republicans in Congress are talking about stripping the Fed of its mandate to promote full employment as a result of this action. We’d like to see Republicans, rather than reacting to things they don’t like, offering up ideas. Is it really that hard, guys? You’ve had two-plus years. Where are your economy-fixing ideas? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

27 Aug 2010 11:48

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Biz: Bernanke plans to save the economy with immaculate beard

  • The Committee is prepared to provide additional monetary accommodation through unconventional measures if it proves necessary, especially if the outlook were to deteriorate significantly.
  • Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke • On his plans to prop the economy up if it makes a double-dip, which is looking more and more likely by the day. Bernanke is currently at the Kansas City Fed’s annual monetary symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, and made the speech to a ton of central bankers. But think of it this way. He was making it to more than just then. He was also trying to reassure people who still get him mixed up with Paul Krugman, or on a really bad day, Thomas Friedman. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

02 Aug 2010 10:55

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Biz: Fed Reserve: Ben Bernanke says what everyone knows already

“We have a considerable way to go to achieve full recovery in our economy.” Really? What gave you that idea? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

28 Jan 2010 20:17

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U.S.: Ben Bernanke reconfirmed because he recovers well after a fall

  • Chairman Bernanke’s performance in addressing the economic crisis and his current efforts to significantly enhance financial regulation to help prevent future crises outweigh his past mistakes.
  • Michigan Sen. Carl Levin • Discussing why Ben Bernanke was worthy of getting reconfirmed as Federal Reserve Chair, despite populist sentiment against a guy seen as one of the main causes for the financial crisis. Ultimately, it was his inventive solutions to tough problems that saved his job. While not always graceful, he did successfully help get the economy back on track. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

22 Jan 2010 16:46

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Politics: Will Ben Bernanke get reconfirmed in the Senate? Neither party knows

  • There is bipartisan support and there’s bipartisan opposition. But you need 60.
  • Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s spokesman, Don Stewart • Regarding whether or not Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke will have the 60 votes needed in the Senate to get himself a second term. Finding trouble reaching that mark in his own party, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid reached out to McConnell’s people to see if they could find 60 votes between the two of them. Considering how vitriolic things have been between the two parties of late, it’s interesting that they’re working together on anything. Neither McConnell nor Reid will commit to supporting Bernanke themselves. Bad sign. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
 
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