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Fed Vice Chair Janet Yellen touched on a variety of regulatory issues during her lengthy confirmation hearing, including the Volcker Rule, efforts by regulators to be more transparent, and how to supervise systemically important nonbank firms.
November 14
WASHINGTON The Senate Banking Committee voted to approve Janet Yellens nomination to head the Federal Reserve on Thursday, with several lawmakers breaking ranks with the rest of their party.
The panel voted 14-8 in favor of Yellen, with the backing of three Republicans Sens. Bob Corker of Tennessee, Mark Kirk of Illinois and Tom Coburn of Oklahoma. Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., meanwhile, broke ranks with Democrats to oppose the nominee to succeed Chairman Ben Bernanke. Yellen has served as vice chairman of the Fed since 2010.
Her nomination will now move to the full Senate floor for a vote.
After the vote, several lawmakers praised Yellens experience.
She comes to the Fed with really some of the best credentials weve ever seen, and I thought the hearing was quite extraordinary, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., told reporters after the vote. She was calm, she showed good judgment, and she was quite forthcoming both in the hearing and in follow-up questions.
Yellen will invoke and use policies that will help us recover through very troubled times, said Sen. Heidi Heitkamp, D-N.D. She is a steady, predictable hand, and partner in our recovery.
Opposition to Yellen continues to center around the agencys monetary policies in the wake of the financial crisis.
I admire Dr. Yellens many years of dedicated public service, her impressive academic background, and her knowledge of, and experience with the Federal Reserve. I also appreciate her taking the time to meet with me, said Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa. However, the Feds years of extraordinary monetary easing, including maintaining negative, real short-term interest rates long after the financial crisis has passed, pose grave and growing risks to our economy.
