In order to accomplish this goal, the new central bank was to be guaranteed full independence, in close continuity with its forebears, in an international Treaty. While the Treaty was very explicit about the primary objective of the new monetary authority, it was left to the Governing Council of the ECB to define and announce the strategy that would support price stability.
However, more than anything that we do in Washington, D.C., the economy’s strength is the direct result of the myriad private decisions made on a daily basis by you and all Americans. In a very real sense, you are the heroes of this story, and you deserve to be commended.