Today, Rep. Ed Perlmutter, (CO-07), a member of the House Financial Services Committee participated in a hearing in which Chairman of the Federal Reserve Ben Bernanke testified about the conduct of monetary policy and the state of the U.S. economy.
With the fluctuations in the stock market, the failure of IndyMac and the volatility of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, this hearing was critical to understanding the state of our nation’s financial markets.
During the Hearing Congressman Perlmutter commented and questioned Chairman Bernanke and made the following statement:
“The Monetary Policy Report to the Congress submitted by the Federal Reserve highlights a number of disturbing financial trends and statistics. ’s productivity is on the rise but worker’s compensation is decreasing, and the personal savings rate continues to drop as consumer’s purchasing power weakens.
Rising prices for food and energy and the decreases in the value of homes are putting our middle class at substantial risk during these difficult times. The US dollar, has been losing value since the middle of 2002, right at the beginning of this current administration. The Housing downturn is spilling into other markets and continues to lower consumer confidence.
This is why I am working with my colleagues on the Financial Services Committee to get the President a strong Housing Package extending FHA’s loan authority, revamping the oversight of government sponsored enterprises and overhauling the FHA’s mortgage insurance.”
