In FED We Trust

Condition: BRAND NEW ISBN: 9780307459695 Author(s): David Wessel Format: Paperback Language: English Year: 2010 Publisher: Random House USA Inc Pages: 352

Description: âWhatever it takesâThat was Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernankeâs vow as the worst financial panic in more than fifty years gripped the world and he struggled to avoid the once unthinkable: a repeat of the Great Depression. Brilliant but temperamentally cautious, Bernanke researched and wrote about the causes of the Depression during his career as an academic. Then when thrust into a role as one of the most important people in the world, he was compelled to boldness by circumstances he never anticipated.The president of the United States can respond instantly to a missile attack with Americaâs military might, but he cannot respond to a financial crisis with real money unless Congress acts. The Fed chairman can. Bernanke did. Under his leadership the Fed spearheaded the biggest government intervention in more than half a century and effectively became the fourth branch of government, with no direct accountability to the nationâs voters.Believing that the economic catastrophe of the 1930s was largely the fault of a sluggish and wrongheaded Federal Reserve, Bernanke was determined not to repeat that epic mistake. In this penetrating look inside the most powerful economic institution in the world, David Wessel illuminates its opaque and undemocratic inner workings, while revealing how the Bernanke Fed led the desperate effort to prevent the worldâs financial engine from grinding to a halt.In piecing together the fullest, most authoritative, and alarming picture yet of this decisive moment in our nationâs history, In Fed We Trust answers the most critical questions. Among them:⢠What did Bernanke and his team at the Fed knowâand what took them by surprise? Which of their actions stretchedâor even ripped throughâthe Fedâs legal authority? Which chilling numbers and indicators made them feel they had no