The Myth of Independence: How Congress Governs the Federal Reserve
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | 4.85 (843 Votes) |
| Asin | : | B071CZ1K7C |
| Format Type | : | |
| Number of Pages | : | 111 Pages |
| Publish Date | : | 2014-05-19 |
| Language | : | English |
DESCRIPTION:
The Fed today retains its unique federal style, diluting the ability of lawmakers and the president to completely centralize control of monetary policy.In the long wake of the financial crisis, with economic prospects decidedly subpar, partisan rivals in Congress seem poised to continue battling over the Fed’s statutory mandates and the powers given to achieve them. Offering a unique account of Congress’s role in steering this evolution, Sarah Binder and Mark Spindel explore the Fed’s past, present, and future and challenge the myth of its independence.Binder and Spindel argue that recurring cycles of crisis, blame, and reform propelled lawmakers to create and revamp the powers and governance of the Fed at critical junctures, including the Panic of 1907, the Great Depression, the postwar Treasury-Fed Accord, the inflationary episode of the 1970s, and the recent financial crisis. The Myth of Independence traces the Fed’s transformation from a weak, secretive, and decentralized institution in 1913 to a remarkably transparent central bank a century later. Born out of crisis a century ago, the Federal Reserve has become the most powerful macroeconomic policymaker and financial regulator in the world. Examining the interdependent relationship between America’s Congress an
"Binder and Spindel have written an extremely thorough study of the Federal Reserve that shows how the institution, while in theory insulated from politics, is in reality anything but. Binder and Spindel convincingly dispel the ‘myth’ of the Fed’s independence as one of the Capitol’s urban legends."--Publishers Weekly. Throughout, fascinating graphics depict the interrelationship between the Fed and congressional politics: one chart links the number of bills introduced to govern Fed policy with the unemployment rate. Binder and Spindel persuasively argue that Congress and the Federal Reserve are interdependent entities
Her books include Advice and Dissent and Stalemate. Sarah Binder is professor of political science at George Washington University and senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. Mark Spindel has spent his entire career in investment management at such organizations as Salomon