WASHINGTON, D.C. – At a hearing today of the House Budget Committee, Ben Bernanke, Chairman of the Federal Reserve, endorsed the need for an economic stimulus package in accordance with the “timely, targeted and temporary” principles advocated by Democrats in congress and a broad range of economists.
Representative Xavier Becerra (CA-31), Assistant to the Speaker of the House and member of the Budget Committee, questioned Chairman Bernanke on the options before congress to assist the most vulnerable during an economic downturn in light of the budgetary pressure created by the Bush tax cuts.
“We now have to tell the American people that we just came out of the ‘best of times’ of this ‘economic boom’,” Rep. Becerra said. “It’s hard to believe that in the best of times, we saw the number of people in poverty go up and millions go without health insurance. I think most would agree that we are now going to see some worse times.”
Chairman Bernanke agreed with Rep. Becerra that an expansion of the food stamp program and unemployment benefits are options that provide immediate assistance to those in need and a quick boost to consumer spending.
Click here to view video of the entire hearing – fast forward to 1:27:45 to see Rep. Becerra’s exchange with Chairman Bernanke.
# # # Becerra.House.gov # # #