If there is one thing on which I believe all of us here can agree, it is that the quality of the staff has been a great strength throughout our institution’s history. Maintaining that quality and commitment to public service will be essential if the Fed is to have a successful second century.
Dispassionate analysis, expertise, and commitment to public service – all are values that have served us well. But one value that strikes me as having been at least as important as any other has been the Federal Reserve’s willingness, during its finest hours, to stand up to political pressure and make tough but necessary decisions.