Bernanke’s reappointment vote is coming down to the wire, it is going to be close. Recall that Bernanke was reappointed in August by Obama and the Senate Finance committee approved him on December 17. Now with seven days until his term expires, his nomination has gone from a sure thing to in doubt.
And, if you think this is not political, consider the 36 senate senate up for election in December:
* 8 said they would vote “aye” (5 democrats, 8 republicans)
* 9 said they would vote “no” (3 democrats, 6 republicans)
* 4 are publicly declared undecided and all are retiring and not running again ( 2 republicans and 2 democrats)
* 15 have made no public statements, all are running for reelection (8 democrats, 6 republicans)
In other words, senators up for reelection are saying “aye” at a rate of 47%, not enough to get Bernanke reappointed let alone achieve 60% for cloture. Party affiliation does not matter.
Thank the MA senate election and the desire of Senators to not support something that is unpopular. Is Bernanke unpopular? The following is from a CNBC survey taken in December. Bernanke was about as popular as Bernie Madoff. Do you want to say yes to a guy this unpopular if you’re in a tight reelection race?