Elizabeth Warren on Fed Appointments

Warren says that Obama should pick nominees for the Board of Governors vacancies that would "look out for Main Street, not big banks." More precisely:

"The five sitting governors have a variety of academic and industry experience, but not one came to the Fed with a meaningful background in overseeing or investigating big banks or any experience distinguishing between the greater risks posed by the biggest banks relative to community banks. By nominating people who have a strong track record in these areas and who have a demonstrated commitment to not backing down when they find problems, the administration can show that it is taking the Fed’s supervision problem seriously. Nominating Wall Street insiders for the Board of Governors would send the opposite message."

 I have a few names in mind.

More on Summers, Yellen and the next Fed chairperson

The NYTimes has a debate on who should be the next Fed chairperson. Predictably Brad DeLong prefers Summers over Yellen, which is almost unique given the backlash that the floating of Summers name caused (see Krugman on that here). Brad's preference is based on the fact that:

"Larry Summers has an edge as the most creative thinker likely to successfully think outside the box should outside-the-box thinking be called for, and least likely to bind himself to an institutional consensus past its sell-by date. If times are placid, the stakes are small. If times are turbulent, outside-the-box thinking has its place. Therefore I have a slight preference for Summers."

While it is arguable if Summers is more creative than Yellen and other possible candidates, I wouldn't disagree that thinking outside the box is an advantage. That's why an heterodox economist would be even better, without false preoccupations about inflation. But in all fairness the best alternative, and one that would be more likely from a political point of view, would be to appoint a politician, rather than an academic economist, someone like Elizabeth Warren, with no knowledge of the natural rate of unemployment and that does not "fear high inflation as they fear a tornado."