White House Gamble Pays for a Princeton Professor (no one knows his

[rodeodance]

exact views).....um....

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/25/business/25profile.html?th=&adxnnl=1&emc=th&adxnnlx=1130225402-Y7gX58uZjzFUoUpcrFFKlw


White House Gamble Pays for a Princeton Professor

By LOUIS UCHITELLE and EDUARDO PORTER

No one seems to know the exact political views of Ben S. Bernanke, President Bush's pick for the next Federal Reserve chairman.


Even before President Bush named Ben S. Bernanke as chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers this spring, Mr. Bernanke decided to gamble. He sold his home in New Jersey last year and told friends that, instead of returning to a tenured professorship at Princeton University, he was taking a chance that President Bush would elevate him from obscurity as a Federal Reserve governor to a top political appointment.
........

But while Washington policy making may be Mr. Bernanke's newly chosen field, no one seems to have a clear idea what his political views are, other than the fact that he is a registered Republican. Mr. Greenspan took strong political positions, using his pulpit at the Fed to promote Social Security private accounts and to sell the president's tax cuts. Mr. Bernanke, in contrast, has been muted on such political hot potatoes even as the president's chief economic adviser.

Now, as he moves to the Fed, he is likely to steer the central bank away from the broader political debate. "One can expect Bernanke to adhere strictly to a more silent stance regarding issues outside of monetary policy," said Kevin A. Hassett, director of Economic Policy Studies at the American Enterprise Institute..........

[wakeme2008]

1. the writers should have watched CSpan last night

He was on talking about how it was the Dot.com run up that created the surplus and all the jobs under the Clinton years. And how the Bush tax cuts were great for the economy.

Bush economy = GOOD,, Clinton policies = False jobs and money.... :grr:

[crispini]

2. Well, he's the Fed chairman.

So I'm not sure it matters.

I bet you ANYTHING that Greenspan himself picked this dude. The markets loved him. And I have nothing but disdain for Chimpy's decisionmaking skills at this point.