Coming up: Head of the Fed

Sandy Levinson

Joseph Stiglitz, among other things a Nobel Prize economist, has an absolutely superb column explaining why Janet Yellen really is the clear choice over Larry Summers as the next head of the Federal Reserve Board.  It will be interesting to observe Congress's behavior in light of the President's stunningly inept presentation of his Syria policy (and, for that matter, his toleration of a perjurious Director of National Intelligence and general lack of openness, even to members of Congress, on vital matters of intelligence.  See, e.g., Alan Grayson's excellent column in the Times.)  As a formal matter, there is obviously no direct connection between these decisions.  But, as Mark Twain once quipped, the 13th chime of a clock puts into doubt the previous twelve.  The President is rapidly losing whatever charisma remained after his re-election (which one might argue was the result of an almost futuristic get-out-the-vote campaign than anything he particularly said). And policies inevitably get intertwined because of political realities, even if the punditry can properly separate them.  So I would expect that a greatly weakened President Obama, having been repudiated by significant numbers of his own party (and base) would have a harder time explaining why Wall Street's favorite is his pick to head the Fed.  One might even see a filibuster made up of other than obstructionist Republicans (e.g., Bernie Sanders).

In any event, if, as I hope, Congress refuses to authorize military action (i.e., acts of war) in Syria and then, by stipulation, rejects the nomination of Summers as head of the Fed, it really would be arguable that the President should resign and allow Joe Biden to take over.  I.e., he would have been humiliatingly rebuffed on key issues of both foreign and domestic policy by, again by stipulation, bi-partisan majorities.  (I.e., I would be more than a bit surprised if Elizabeth Warren would not take the lead in questioning the appointment of one of the key individuals behind the limitations of Obama's general take on the economy, as spelled out in Ron Suskind's excellent book Confidence Men.  As Stiglitz argues, Summers has a surfeit of confidence in his own capacities and an undersupply of sound judgment.  (I am, with great reluctance, beginning to believe that the same may be true of the President, though I still regard this as an open question.)

So, perhaps one consequence of rejecting the Syrian adventure will be the far greater likelihood of Yellen's appointment, which I assume would be easily confirmed.  In any event, hold on to your hats (and wallets) as the American system of separated powers and fixed-term presidencies continues to play itself out.
Posted 4:45 PM by Sandy Levinson [link]