ICYMI: Multiple Nobel Prize Winners and Former Federal Reserve Governors Join Over 180 Leading Economists in Calling for Confirmation of Biden's Fed Nominees

More than 180 economists wrote to Senate leadership this morning urging them to swiftly confirm all five of President Biden's Federal Reserve nominees – Jerome Powell, Lael Brainard, Sarah Bloom Raskin, Lisa Cook, and Philip Jefferson – saying the group of nominees is "among the best legal and economic minds in our country," and the slate "has demonstrated sound judgment and collegial professionalism throughout their careers."

The group of endorsing economists includes several former members of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, multiple Nobel Prize winners, several former members of past White House Council of Economic Advisers, and respected economists from around the country. The list includes Ben Bernanke, Sandra Black, Alan Blinder, Roger Ferguson, Robert Solow, Maurice Obstfeld, Mark Zandi, Laura Tyson, Joseph Stiglitz, Betsey Stevenson and more.

The letter is just the latest sign of the momentum behind this group of experienced and qualified nominees following their hearing at the Senate Banking Committee last week.

Full letter linked here or read below:

Dear Majority Leader Schumer, Minority Leader McConnell, Chairman Brown, and Ranking Member Toomey:

We, the undersigned economists, urge you, for the growth and stability of our economy, to swiftly confirm President Biden's nominees for the Federal Reserve System Board of Governors.

While we do not all agree on monetary policy or how the Federal Reserve should respond to the current economic environment, we believe that all five currently pending nominees—Jerome Powell (Chair), Lael Brainard (Vice Chair), Sarah Bloom-Raskin (Vice Chair for Supervision), Lisa Cook, and Philip Jefferson—are highly qualified to serve and would bring a critical set of perspectives and skills to the job.

In addition to representing among the best legal and economic minds in our country, this slate of nominees has demonstrated sound judgment and collegial professionalism throughout their careers. The current nominees also are the most demographically diverse slate of candidates ever proposed to the Federal Reserve Board. They would bring needed perspectives on how Federal Reserve policies can contribute to better and more equitable outcomes in the United States.

With our country facing a number of pressing economic challenges, including a global pandemic, supply chain disruptions, rising prices, depressed labor force participation, and stark racial disparities in employment, it is imperative that the Federal Reserve System has a full seven member Board of Governors. If confirmed, the current slate of nominees would allow the Federal Reserve to vigorously pursue its dual mandate of full employment and price stability—a mission that has an immense impact on the lives of all Americans.

Please act quickly and decisively to confirm President Biden's nominees for the Federal Reserve so that they can get to work for the American people.

Signed,

Katharine Abraham
Professor of Economics, University of Maryland
Former Member, White House Council of Economic Advisers

Byron Auguste
CEO and Co-Founder, Opportunity@Work
Former Deputy Director, White House National Economic Council

Ben Bernanke
Distinguished Senior Fellow, Brookings Institution
Former Chair, Federal Reserve Board of Governors

Sandra Black
Professor of Economics and International and Public Affairs,
Columbia University
Former Member, White House Council of Economic Advisers

Alan Blinder
Professor of Economics, Princeton University Former
Vice Chair, Federal Reserve Board of Governors

Roger Ferguson
Former President and CEO, TIAA
Former Vice Chair, Federal Reserve Board of Governors

Austan Goolsbee
Professor of Economics, University of Chicago
Former Chair, White House Council of Economic Advisers

Erica Groshen
Senior Economics Advisor, Cornell University
Former Commissioner, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

Michelle Holder
President and CEO, Washington Center for Equitable Growth
Associate Professor of Economics, John Jay College, City University of New York

Lawrence Katz
Professor of Economics, Harvard University Former Chief Economist,
U.S. Department of Labor

Maurice Obstfeld
Professor of Economics, University of California-Berkeley
Former Member,
White House Council of Economic Advisers

Jesse Rothstein
Professor of Economics, University of California-Berkeley
Former Chief Economist,
U.S. Department of Labor

Heidi Shierholz
President, Economic Policy Institute
Former Chief Economist, U.S. Department of Labor

Robert Solow
Emeritus Professor of Economics,
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
1987 Recipient of Nobel Prize in Economics

William Spriggs
Professor of Economics, Howard University
Chief Economist, AFL-CIO

Betsey Stevenson
Professor of Economics and Public Policy, University of Michigan
Former Chief Economist,
U.S. Department of Labor

Joseph Stiglitz
Professor of Economics, Columbia University
2001 Co-Recipient of Nobel Prize in Economics

James Stock
Professor of Economics, Harvard University
Former Member, White House Council of Economic Advisers

Laura Tyson
Professor of Business & Public Policy, University of California-Berkeley
Former Chair, White House Council of Economic Advisers

Mark Zandi
Chief Economist, Moody's Analytics
Board Chair, Reinvestment Fund

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