After Much Concern, Ben Bernanke Wins Second Term As Fed Chief
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The Senate ended the debate on whether or not to nominate Ben Bernanke for a second term on Thursday with a 70-30 vote to bring him back as the chairman of the National Reserve.
Bernanke needed a simple majority of 51 votes to gain approval.
The nomination came after a procedural vote in the Senate where supporters of Bernanke warned that not bringing him back would kick the legs out from under the already fragile recovery from the economic recession.
"We need the wisdom of patience," Sen. Robert Menendez (Democrat-New Jersey). “To vote against confirmation could unnerve investors and exacerbated economic uncertainty in the marketplace, which is exactly what we do not need at this time."
On the other side, the advocates of voting him down pointed to his oversight of the banking system during the downturn and to the mortgage regulation that was put in place under his watch that allowed the economy to collapse in on itself.
"Bernanke fiddled while our markets burned,” Sen. Richard Shelby (Republican-Alabama) said. "I believe that it is the duty of this body to hold accountable those regulators whose poor oversight of our financial institutions and markets helped produce the greatest economic crisis this country has experienced in eighty years."
The vote was the closest for any nominee for Fed chairman in the nearly 32 years that the Senate has had the responsibility of deciding the position.
Bernanke has avoided being ousted from his postion, but he will continue to face scrutiny from lawmakers responding to the public outcry towards big banks and their regulators.
Bernanke needed a simple majority of 51 votes to gain approval.
The nomination came after a procedural vote in the Senate where supporters of Bernanke warned that not bringing him back would kick the legs out from under the already fragile recovery from the economic recession.
"We need the wisdom of patience," Sen. Robert Menendez (Democrat-New Jersey). “To vote against confirmation could unnerve investors and exacerbated economic uncertainty in the marketplace, which is exactly what we do not need at this time."
On the other side, the advocates of voting him down pointed to his oversight of the banking system during the downturn and to the mortgage regulation that was put in place under his watch that allowed the economy to collapse in on itself.
"Bernanke fiddled while our markets burned,” Sen. Richard Shelby (Republican-Alabama) said. "I believe that it is the duty of this body to hold accountable those regulators whose poor oversight of our financial institutions and markets helped produce the greatest economic crisis this country has experienced in eighty years."
The vote was the closest for any nominee for Fed chairman in the nearly 32 years that the Senate has had the responsibility of deciding the position.
Bernanke has avoided being ousted from his postion, but he will continue to face scrutiny from lawmakers responding to the public outcry towards big banks and their regulators.
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