Obama To Reappoint Bernanke
Courtesy of Tom Lindmark at But Then What
For all of the pixels that have been spilled over it, the announcement that Obama will reappoint Bernanke to another term as Chairman of the Fed seems sort of anticlimactic.
According to the WSJ, Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel announced that the President will make it official on Tuesday. Now, the ball will be in Congress’s court.
I didn’t write much at all on this topic as I considered it a done deal from the beginning. There was little for Obama to gain by going with someone untested and equally little to lose with staying the course. If he had gone with new blood and the economy blew up, he would be second guessed forever about the move. Going with Bernanke, even if things go badly off course, he can always contend that he has the most experienced man at the helm and, of course, point out that Bernanke has been in control throughout, therefore, any major problems belong to him.
Hey, as Bush memories fade it pays to have a new fall guy waiting in the wings.
The Congressional hearings will be interesting but that’s about all. The chances of Congress disapproving the appointment are nil. Lots of hearings, press releases and pomposity but in the end it won’t amount to a hill of beans.
The real drama starts the first time that Bernanke has to take the inevitable actions that run counter to the administration’s plans. Will we find we have a Greenspan, a Volcker or something in between?
