Change with Paul Volcker

Today President-elect Obama announced Former Federal Reserve chairman Paul Volcker as head of the President's Economic Recovery Advisory Board, while the board's top staff official will be Austan Goolsbee, a University of Chicago economist. And guess what! Goolsbee has never been in Washington! However, Volcker has.

In this morning’s news conference, Obama tried to reassure Americans that "help is on the way" for the economy. Apparently this help comes in the form of Paul Volcker, who was appointed Chairman of the Federal Reserve in August 1979 by President Jimmy Carter and reappointed in 1983 by President Ronald Reagan. Volcker helped tame inflation by raising interest rates, despite intense opposition by some in Congress. However, Volcker’s Fed contributed to the significant recession the U.S. economy experienced in the early 1980s, which included the highest unemployment levels since the Great Depression. Volcker's Fed also elicited the strongest political attacks and most wide-spread protests in the history of the Federal Reserve.

The President-elect also stated, again, how the “old ways of thinking just won’t do”. I guess by old ways he means anything from the last “horrific” eight years, anyone from the CARTER or Clinton administration is fine. I’m sorry but if help is on the way, why would you (Reagan and Obama) appoint a guy who’s Fed contributed to a recession and included the highest unemployment levels of its time? Plus I thought recession was a bad thing. And we all have heard the rising numbers in job employment, and Obama’s answer is to bring Volcker? It’s like you’re in a building on fire and Volcker’s the fireman who makes the fire spread. Am I missing something here?

But don’t worry America you’ll get your change, or least pray that your wallets will still have change with Paul Volcker.