Ben Bernanke Quotes

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About Ben Bernanke

Ben Bernanke, born on December 13, 1953, in Dillon, South Carolina, is an American economist who served as the Chairman of the Federal Reserve, the U.S. central banking system, from 2006 to 2014. His tenure was marked by significant monetary policies aimed at mitigating the effects of the Great Recession. Bernanke's academic journey began at Harvard University where he earned his Bachelor's degree in economics in 1975. He continued his studies at Stanford University, completing his Master's and Ph.D. in economics in 1979 and 1986 respectively. His doctoral dissertation focused on the Great Depression, a topic that would significantly influence his future career. Before joining the Federal Reserve, Bernanke held positions at various academic institutions, including the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Princeton University, and the Carnegie Mellon University. He also served as a member of President Clinton's Council of Economic Advisers from 1995 to 1996. In 2002, Bernanke was appointed by President George W. Bush as a member of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. He succeeded Alan Greenspan as Chairman in February 2006, a role he held until January 2014. During his tenure as chairman, Bernanke implemented various monetary policies, including quantitative easing, to stimulate economic growth and combat the financial crisis that erupted in 2008. Bernanke is also the author of several books, including "Principals of Macroeconomics" (1989) and "The Federal Reserve's Decision to Use Forward Guidance About the Future Path of Interest Rates" (2013). His insights and actions during the financial crisis have made him a key figure in modern American monetary policy. After leaving the Fed, Bernanke returned to the academic world, holding the Distinguished Fellowship Hutchins Center on Fiscal and Monetary Policy at the Brookings Institution.

Interpretations of Popular Quotes

"The Federal Reserve's job is to promote maximum employment, and price stability is a crucial part of that."

The given quote by Ben Bernanke implies that the primary role of the Federal Reserve (the U.S central bank) is to maintain a balance between two essential economic objectives: 1. Maximum Employment: This means the Fed aims to foster an economic climate conducive to achieving full employment, where all able, willing, and qualified individuals are employed in jobs that match their skills and aspirations. A strong labor market benefits society as a whole by improving living standards and social stability. 2. Price Stability: This objective refers to maintaining a low and stable inflation rate. Prices of goods and services should ideally grow at a moderate pace, which allows people's purchasing power to remain steady over time, ensuring that money retains its value and consumers can effectively plan their expenditures. In essence, the Federal Reserve focuses on creating a healthy economy where employment is high and stable, while keeping prices under control, fostering long-term economic growth and maintaining overall financial system stability.


"We will do whatever we deem necessary, although probably not everything, to promote a strong economic recovery."

This quote implies that the speaker, Ben Bernanke, is expressing a commitment to take decisive action to foster a robust economic recovery. However, he clarifies that this does not mean they will do absolutely anything, suggesting a balance between intervention and discretion in their decision-making process. In essence, it signifies a strong determination to revive the economy, but within reasonable boundaries.


"In the long run, monetary policy cannot solve all economic problems, no matter how severe."

Ben Bernanke's statement means that while monetary policy (central bank actions like interest rates and money supply management) can be effective in managing certain economic issues over short periods, it is not a panacea for all economic problems, particularly those of a severe or structural nature. In the long run, solving deep-seated economic challenges requires a combination of monetary, fiscal, and structural policies, as well as time for the economy to adjust and heal.


"The U.S. can and will sustain an economy that provides employment opportunities for those who are willing and able to work."

This quote by former Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke suggests a strong belief in America's economic potential and its ability to generate job opportunities. He implies that the U.S. is capable of maintaining an economy that encourages employment for those who are willing and able to work, emphasizing the interconnectedness between economic prosperity and employment. In essence, Bernanke is stating his confidence in the U.S. economy's capacity to create jobs and support its working population.


"Central banks are not primarily in the business of trying to stabilize financial markets; our primary mandate is price stability and maximum employment."

This quote by former Federal Reserve Chair, Ben Bernanke, indicates that central banks prioritize maintaining stable prices (inflation control) and maximizing employment over regulating financial markets for short-term stability. The role of a central bank is not to continuously intervene in the financial markets to prevent volatility or crises, but rather to focus on long-term economic objectives such as price stability and fostering job creation.


The biggest downside of my current job is that I have to wear a suit to work. Wearing uncomfortable clothes on purpose is an example of what former Princeton hockey player and Nobel Prize winner Michael Spence taught economists to call 'signaling.'

- Ben Bernanke

Purpose, Wear, Prize, Michael

Of course, economic forecasts must be revised when new information arrives and are thus necessarily provisional.

- Ben Bernanke

New, Thus, Necessarily, Provisional

The economist John Maynard Keynes said that in the long run, we are all dead. If he were around today he might say that, in the long run, we are all on Social Security and Medicare.

- Ben Bernanke

Long Run, Social, Might, Economist

I think one of the lessons of the Depression - and this is something that Franklin Roosevelt demonstrated - was that when orthodoxy fails, then you need to try new things. And he was very willing to try unorthodox approaches when the orthodox approach had shown that it was not adequate.

- Ben Bernanke

New Things, I Think, Very, Orthodoxy

Monetary policy is not a panacea.

- Ben Bernanke

Monetary, Monetary Policy, Panacea

Neighborhoods and communities are complex organisms that will be resilient only if they are healthy along a number of interrelated dimensions, much as a human body cannot be healthy without adequate air, water, rest, and food.

- Ben Bernanke

Body, Air, Adequate, Interrelated

As we try to make the financial system safer, we must inevitably confront the problem of moral hazard.

- Ben Bernanke

Problem, System, Hazard, Inevitably

Our financial system is so complicated and so interactive - so many different markets in different countries and so many sets of rules.

- Ben Bernanke

Financial, Interactive, Sets, Different Countries

The movement toward a holistic approach to community development has been long in the making, but the housing crisis has motivated further progress.

- Ben Bernanke

Development, Making, Been, Holistic

Many foreclosed homes are neglected or abandoned, as legal proceedings or other factors delay their resale. Deteriorating or vacant properties can, in turn, directly affect the quality of life in a neighborhood, for example, by leading to increases in vandalism or crime.

- Ben Bernanke

Other, Affect, Leading, Delay

Among other objectives, liquidity guidelines must take into account the risks that inadequate liquidity planning by major financial firms pose for the broader financial system, and they must ensure that these firms do not become excessively reliant on liquidity support from the central bank.

- Ben Bernanke

Financial, Other, Liquidity, Excess

Preventing liquidation of an unbalanced market will leave you in tears.

- Ben Bernanke

Tears, Market, Preventing, Liquidation

Home purchases that are very highly leveraged or unaffordable subject the borrower and lender to a great deal of risk. Moreover, even in a strong economy, unforeseen life events and risks in local real estate markets make highly leveraged borrowers vulnerable.

- Ben Bernanke

Deal, Very, Unforeseen, Moreover

If bankers become overly conservative in response to past lending mistakes - or if examiners force such behavior - it will hurt bankers' own long-term interests and the economy in general.

- Ben Bernanke

Conservative, Will, Bankers, Overly

At the most basic level, a central bank must be clear and open about its actions and operations, particularly when they involve the deployment of public funds.

- Ben Bernanke

Clear, Level, Particularly, Funds

Importantly, in the 1930s, in the Great Depression, the Federal Reserve, despite its mandate, was quite passive and, as a result, financial crisis became very severe, lasted essentially from 1929 to 1933.

- Ben Bernanke

Financial Crisis, Became, Reserve

The Federal Reserve has always recognized the importance of allowing markets to work, and government oversight of financial firms will never be fully effective without the aid of strong market discipline.

- Ben Bernanke

Strong, Will, Always, Reserve

Achieving price stability is not only important in itself, it is also central to attaining the Federal Reserve's other mandate objectives of maximum sustainable employment and moderate long-term interest rates.

- Ben Bernanke

Other, Sustainable, Mandate, Reserve

It's true that the Federal Reserve faces a lot of political pressure and is unpopular in many circles.

- Ben Bernanke

True, Lot, Federal Reserve, Reserve

The Federal Reserve can only buy Treasuries and agencies, and moreover quantitative easing typically involves buying longer-term Treasuries and agencies in terms of bills, for example.

- Ben Bernanke

Buy, Involves, Agencies, Reserve

If the fiscal cliff occurs, I don't think the Federal Reserve has the tools to offset that event.

- Ben Bernanke

Think, Cliff, Offset, Reserve

In the past, Federal Reserve chairmen have not generally gone directly to the public.

- Ben Bernanke

Past, In The Past, Public, Reserve

As you know, in the latter part of 2008 and early 2009, the Federal Reserve took extraordinary steps to provide liquidity and support credit market functioning, including the establishment of a number of emergency lending facilities and the creation or extension of currency swap agreements with 14 central banks around the world.

- Ben Bernanke

Emergency, Part, Extension, Reserve

All the Federal Reserve can do is make loans against collateral.

- Ben Bernanke

Federal Reserve, Loans, Reserve

The Federal Reserve's job is to do the right thing, to take the long-run interest of the economy to heart, and that sometimes means being unpopular. But we have to do the right thing.

- Ben Bernanke

Sometimes, Right, Means, Reserve

There are a number of institutions globally where the Federal Reserve typically leads the U.S. effort to work with financial regulators from other countries, and we try to, to the extent possible, establish international standards for how - the amount of capital a bank should hold, for example, or how much.

- Ben Bernanke

Other, Capital, Extent, Reserve

The failure of Lehman Brothers demonstrated that liquidity provision by the Federal Reserve would not be sufficient to stop the crisis; substantial fiscal resources were necessary.

- Ben Bernanke

Crisis, Necessary, Brothers, Reserve

Because financially capable consumers ultimately contribute to a stable economic and financial system as well as improve their own financial situations, it's clear that the Federal Reserve has a significant stake in financial education.

- Ben Bernanke

Education, Financial, Own, Reserve

After the 1929 crash, the Federal Reserve mistakenly focused its policies on preserving the gold value of the dollar rather than on stabilizing the domestic economy.

- Ben Bernanke

Policies, Economy, Rather, Reserve

Fostering transparency and accountability at the Federal Reserve was one of my principal objectives when I became Chairman in February 2006.

- Ben Bernanke

February, Fostering, Became, Reserve

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