Free Republic

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell sold between $1 million and $5 million in stocks at the beginning of October 2020 — a month that turned out to be the worst for Wall Street since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. The transaction, which is noted on a public disclosure form Powell signed off on in May and was first reported Monday by The American Prospect, is an uncomfortable echo of activities that led to the recent resignations of two regional leaders of America’s central bank.... ...As Powell played the market, he was calling on Congress to pass a second COVID-19...

The U.S. economy is roaring. More voters rate the economy positively today than have since 2001. According to spending data from June, Americans spent more at restaurants and retail locations than expected, while U.S. manufacturing output continues to rise. As Federal Reserve Vice Chair Richard Clarida recently put it, "The U.S. economy is in a good, good place. We have a solid growth rate. We have a strong labor market. Inflation is stable." He’s right. Economic growth has been north of 3 percent during much of Trump’s presidency. Employers are creating jobs, employees are happy with raises, bonuses, and newfound...

Obama considers Republican for one of two seats on FedBy Neil Irwin, Published: August 12 President Obama is considering nominating two economists with backgrounds in finance — one of them a Republican — as Federal Reserve governors, according to a source familiar with the decision making. The White House is looking at Jeremy Stein, a Harvard economist, and Richard Clarida, of Columbia University and the bond investment firm Pimco, to fill two vacant slots on the seven-member Fed Board of Governors. Clarida served in George W. Bush’s Treasury Department as an assistant secretary. Stein did a brief stint at Treasury...