Quotes from Ben S. Bernanke

If we acted, nobody would thank us. But if we did not act, who would? Making politically unpopular decisions for the long-run benefit of the country is the reason the Fed exists as a politically independent central bank. It was created for precisely this purpose: to do what must be done—what others cannot or will not do.

Barney Frank wanted to know where the Fed was going to get the $85 billion to lend to AIG. I didn't think this was the time to explain the mechanics of creating bank reserves. I said, "We have $800 billion," referring to the pre-crisis size of the Fed's balance sheet. Barney looked stunned. He didn't see why the Fed should have that kind of money at its disposal.

I had become a Great Depression buff in the way that other people are Civil War buffs, reading not only about the economics of the period but about the politics, sociology, and history as well.

Economists are criticized for not being able to predict the future, but, because the data are incomplete and subject to revision, we cannot even be sure what happened in the recent past. Noisy data make effective policymaking all the more difficult.

They also reminded me of a story Dallas Fed president Richard Fisher included in one of his speeches about the early nineteenth-century French diplomat Talleyrand and his archrival, Prince Metternich of Austria. When Talleyrand died, Metternich was reported to have said, "I wonder what he meant by that?" It seemed that no matter what I said or how plainly I said it, the markets tried to divine some hidden meaning.

If you've got a squirt gun in your pocket, you may have to take it out. If you've got a bazooka, and people know you've got it, you may not have to take it out," he said. Sometimes market fears can be self-fulfilling, and a strong demonstration can avoid the worst outcomes. I was reminded of the military doctrine of "overwhelming force" as the way to prompt quick surrender and minimize casualties.

You have a neighbor, who smokes in bed. . . . Suppose he sets fire to his house," I would say later in an interview. "You might say to yourself . . . 'I'm not gonna call the fire department. Let his house burn down. It's fine with me.' But then, of course, what if your house is made of wood? And it's right next door to his house? What if the whole town is made of wood?

They believed that anyone who worked hard to feed his or her family, no matter how humble the work, deserved respect.

When my Princeton colleague Alan Blinder asked about my prospects of becoming Fed chairman, I downplayed the idea, saying the probability of that happening was "maybe 5 percent

My resolve against backstopping Fannie and Freddie didn't last long.

Why did Trump's message resonate?

she worried about whether I had the clothes and social skills to fit in.

Why would a strong bank pay the penalty rate if it didn't have to?

Nobody bought into that philosophy more than WaMu

His writings were often obscure,

it, we are just going to have to give it a try and see what happens.

and another layer of decision making in the form of a council could inhibit rapid and effective responses to systemic risks.

almost eighty years old but still sharp and active

Nevertheless, the perceived stigma of borrowing from the discount window was and remains a formidable barrier to its effectiveness.

I agreed, with reluctance.

my mother was, though intelligent, not particularly intellectual.

WE THOUGHT THAT our actions at the December 11 meeting would be roughly in sync with investor expectations. The market reaction quickly told us otherwise;

Ultimately, however, the administration's plan included a watered-down version of Sheila's idea.

and thus disqualified from continuing as chairman.