In the fall of 2008, the FOMC cut that target to just above zero in response to  13  See Reifschneider and Williams (2000) for a strategy in which a central bank following a Taylor rule makes up for shortfalls in policy accommodation during ELB episodes by subsequently keeping the policy rate lower than otherwise.
A common theme running through those meetings was surprisingly robust growth in 2004. The global economy is expected to grow by 5% this year, which is the highest growth in 30 years.