Bernanke Nominated to Replace Greenspan
Oct. 24, 2005 — -- President Bush today nominated Ben Bernanke, chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisors, to replace Alan Greenspan as Federal Reserve Chairman
Greenspan, who took over in August 1987, wraps up his term as chairman Jan. 31.
Bernanke was a member of the Board of Governors at the Fed from 2002 to 2005. He served as chair of the economics department at Princeton from 1996 to 2002 and was an economics professor there from 1985 to 1996. Before teaching at Princeton, he taught at the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University and at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Bernanke also served as director of the Monetary Economics Program at the National Bureau of Economic Research in Cambridge, Mass. He has held a Guggenheim Fellowship, a Sloan Fellowship and is a fellow of the Econometric Society of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
Bernanke has been described as one of the leading researchers in monetary policy. Early in his career he conducted influential research on the Great Depression that later influenced many of his own economic tenets. He is often associated with the concept of inflation targeting, or the setting of goals for inflation prices similar to many other central banks throughout the world.
Additionally, he has been a strong proponent for greater transparency at the Fed, making the actions and objectives of the central bank clearer for the financial markets. Some economists believe Greenspan, though widely respected, personalized monetary policy too much. Bernanke is believed to care more about building up the reputation of the institution.
Bernanke brought ideas to the table at the Fed. He spoke about the job market, inflation and deflation and high oil prices.
While he may have had differences with Greenspan, most observers believe Bernanke would continue Greenspan's policies.
Bernanke was born Dec. 13, 1953 in Augusta, Ga., and grew up in Dillon, S.C. He graduated summa cum laude with a degree in economics from Harvard in 1979 and received a Ph.D. in economics from MIT.
He perviously served two terms on the school board in Montgomery Township, N.J. He and his wife, Anna, have two children.
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