De-Politicizing the Fed

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke was confirmed by the Senate yesterday and will now serve another four-year term as Fed chair. It may seem odd that a Democratic president would re-nominate someone originally nominated by a Republican to such a crucial government position, but it's actually been quite a long time since a president tried to change a Fed chairman put into office by the opposing party. Here are the last few men to hold the job:

Bernanke, first appointed by Republican Bush in 2006, re-appointed by Democrat Obama in 2010.

Alan Greenspan, first appointed by Republican Reagan in 1987, re-appointed by Republican Bush, Democrat Clinton, and Republican Bush before retiring in 2006.

Paul Volcker, first appointed by Democrat Carter in 1979, re-appointed by Republican Reagan.

G. William Miller, first appointed by Democrat Carter in 1978, left the Fed to serve as Carter's Treasury Secretary.

Arthur Brown, first appointed by Republican Nixon in 1970, but Carter chose to replace him with Miller in 1978. That makes it over 30 years since a president failed to re-nominate a Fed chair initially appointed by the opposing party.