WASHINGTON — The Senate Banking Committee voted by a 14-8 margin earlier today to proceed forward with Janet Yellen’s nomination to chair the United States Federal Reserve. The full senate will now vote on her confirmation.
Yellen, who is currently the Federal Reserve’s vice chairman, is expected to win confirmation in the Senate and will fill the void left by Ben Bernanke when his second term expires next year.
Yellen would become the first woman to head the Federal Reserve, but her vote in the Senate Banking Committee earlier today came with the objection of Alabama’s Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Tuscaloosa.
[READ: Shelby expresses concerns in private meeting with Obama’s fed nominee].
Shelby was one of the eight “no” votes, adding that he was not confident Yellen would shift course from Bernanke’s monetary policy, which many economists predict could ultimately lead to out-of-control inflation.
“Since 2008, the Fed’s printing presses have generated a backdoor stimulus nearly four times greater than the $787 Obama stimulus,” Shelby said in a statement provided to Yellowhammer. “The Fed is the world’s largest holder of U.S. Treasury bonds and the biggest enabler of our exploding debt. These actions also present massive risks for sharp price increases on every single product that Americans buy. I voted against President Obama’s nominee because I have no confidence that she will change course.”
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