Reports
Reuters:
Federal
Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Wednesday rebutted Republican lawmakers pushing
a bill that would give Congress the ability to review monetary policy
decisions, saying it could compromise central bank independence.
Bernanke said it would be a “nightmare
scenario” if politicians decided to second-guess monetary policy.
“That is very concerning because there’s
a lot of evidence that an independent central bank that makes decisions based
strictly on economic considerations and not based on political pressure will
deliver lower inflation and better economic results in the longer term,”
Bernanke told the U.S. House of Representatives’ Financial Services Committee.
The
hearing was the likely last chance for retiring Texas Representative Ron Paul,
known for proposing the Fed should be abolished, to grill the central bank
chairman.
“Trillions
and trillions of dollars (are) being printed out of thin air,” said Paul.
The Republican-controlled House is on
track to take up Paul’s Fed audit legislation next week. The bill, which has
been co-sponsored by more than half of all House members, looks set to clear
that chamber…
Paul’s bill would direct the Government
Accountability Office, an independent, nonpartisan congressional agency, to
conduct a Fed review, and it would remove an exemption monetary policy has
enjoyed.
Bernanke said the very notion of a
monetary policy audit was misleading.
The
funniest part of this story:
“The term ‘audit the Fed’ is deceptive.
The public thinks that auditing means checking the books, looking at the
financial statements, making sure that you’re not doing special deals, and that
kind of thing. All of those things are (already) completely open,” (Bernanke)
said.
Completely
open? Yeah right!
Source: Paulitical Ticker with Jack Hunter
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