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["Wendy" <crazygardens AT verizon.net>]

Gene,
Does Greenspan give any explanation as to what happened during the Carter 
administration?  I have yet to see a good explanation that would cause the 
sudden double-digit inflation and excessive hike in the prime.

Wendy


> He was most frustrated by politicians. He admired Ford for many
> qualities. He feels Clinton was most true to pursuing policies that
> were best for the country. He was frustrated by Bush II who insisted
> on fulfilling campaign promises though the Fed found them bad for the
> country.
>
> It is giving me a more balanced perspective on the national economy
> and how it works. Economics was largely inscrutable to me. Happily,
> in his writing, Greenspan drops the Fed Speak.
>
> As for how much power he had, I think it is an indication of his
> qualities that presidents of both parties gave him the job.
>
> He found the media perception of him pretty silly. He notes the
> "briefcase indicator" where CNBC cameras followed him and showed
> whether his briefcase was slim or bulging as an indicator of whether
> the Fed was calm and untroubled or burning the midnight oil and a
> rate hike was imminent. "For the record, the briefcase indicator was
> not accurate. The fatness of my briefcase was solely a function of
> whether I had packed my lunch." (page 198)