29
January
Bernanke Wins New Term
29 January 2010 Wall Street Journal
Ben Bernanke won the backing of the Senate for a second four-year term as chairman of the Federal Reserve by a comfortable margin Thursday. Even with that storm behind him, Mr. Bernanke faces formidable political and economic challenges made tougher by the bruising confirmation fight.
Weeks of criticism from Congress—and moments during which his confirmation prospects seemed uncertain—have weakened Mr. Bernanke's political standing. That may make it harder for him to defend the Fed as Congress prepares to intensify its oversight of monetary policy and curb the Fed's authority over the banking system. In an interview, Mr. Bernanke's predecessor, Alan Greenspan, called his own occasionally tense relations with Congress "tranquil" by comparison.
