A Fed Geography Lesson

George SelginAlthough one might suppose that, to be eligible to serve as a  Federal Reserve governor, a candidate should know something about monetary policy or banking or both, so far as the law is concerned, only two things clearly matter: a candidate cannot serve more than once, and he or she can’t be from just anywhere.Few Americans will know that that second requirement exists, why it does, and how it has come to be routinely ignored. Yet the question of geographic eligibility is likely to be raised during upcoming Senate confirmation hearings for two current Fed Board nominees, Judy Shelton and Chris Waller. Hence this brief “Fed Geography Lesson,” written for the sake of those who, should a fuss be raised about where a nominee comes from, wonder what it’s all about.Checking Eastern InfluenceUnlike other central banking arrangements, the Federal Reserve System consists, not of a  single central bank, but of a dozen banks each responsible for a separate territory or district. The system is overseen by a Board of Governors headquartered in Washington, D.C., whose seven members are appointed by the President for terms lasting up to 14 years.When, in 1913, the Federal Reserve Act was being hammered ‐​out in Congress, certain influential Democratic Congressmen, fearing that the Federal Reserve Board (as the present Board of Governors was then known) might come to be dominated by persons (and Wall Street bankers and their cronies especially) from the Eas...
Source: Cato-at-liberty - Category: American Health Authors: Source Type: blogs