Bernanke Defends Approach on Jobs, Inflation
The Federal Reserve chairman tells the Senate Budget Committee Tuesday that the bank's efforts are balanced.
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke appeared before the Senate Budget Committee Tuesday, defending and explaining the Fed’s dual efforts to control inflation and unemployment, reports the New York Times.
Congressional Republicans have taken issue with a formal statement released by the Fed January 25, in which the central bank outlines methods to be used in balancing unemployment and inflation. Specifically, the Fed said that while it will not seek to raise inflation, it may slow measures to reduce inflation in a way that will promote job growth.
Some Senate Republicans have raised concerns that the Fed is prioritizing job growth over inflation (as did House Republicans last week). But Bernanke told the Senate that the Fed’s approach is “fully balanced and symmetrical.”
“I want to disabuse any notion that there is a priority for maximum employment,” he said.
Bernanke also put pressure on Congress to make a long-term plan for deficit reduction, the Times reported. “We clearly need some major changes in our fiscal planning, in our fiscal path going forward,” he said. –Abby Tracy
Photo via Medill DC
