Quotes from Ben S. Bernanke

Our goal was to send the markets as clear and strong a signal as possible, while still allowing us enough wiggle room to change course if necessary.

The deepest frustration we shared, it soon became clear, was not with the baggage but with government dysfunction itself.

However, further limitations on emergency authorities, especially if combined with a rollback of the orderly liquidation authority itself, would leave the Fed and other agencies without essential tools to respond to the next crisis.

And while the FDIC had emergency authority to wind down failing commercial banks in a swift and orderly fashion, no one had the authority to step in to avoid a chaotic bankruptcy of a major nonbank, to inject capital into a nonbank, or to guarantee its liabilities.

Still, the backfire potential during a live, unscripted televised exchange with reporters was significant.

the economy performs best if the central bank has the latitude to make monetary policy decisions in pursuit of maximum employment and stable prices,

now his not-so-secret ambition was to be chairman of the Fed after my departure.

For the good of our economy and our country, I hope that continues.

we both strongly believed all children deserved a quality education.

It was premature to make a definitive judgment about the effects of QE2, but the early signs seemed promising.

I found myself becoming increasingly interested in the policy frameworks that central banks use, and in how those frameworks might be improved.

Improved financial conditions in turn seemed to be helping the economy. Payroll

I didn't want to influence his choice too much, since my support for any one candidate could easily be misrepresented as opposition to another.

On the demand side, tax cuts should lead to more consumer spending—although by how much depends on the form of the cuts and who receives them—

Rick was brash, with strong opinions, and sometimes outrageously funny, in contrast with the calm and understated Mark Gertler.

I believed—that all three were very well qualified

If he follows through, the

It has to back its words with actions by adjusting monetary policy—usually by raising or lowering a benchmark interest rate—as needed to hit the inflation target over its stated time horizon.

As politically independent central bankers, we had to walk a fine line.

Nevertheless, announcing an inflation target instills discipline and accountability, because it forces policymakers either to hit their target or to offer a credible explanation for why they missed.

I thought we should be willing to offer advice, at least in private, if it would be helpful and

We quickly developed a good working relationship.

In other words, the world will face the threat of financial crises as long as risk-taking and maturity transformation remain central to finance, and as long as humans remain human. Unfortunately, disaster will always be possible.

to respond flexibly to economic developments without the constraint of an announced target.