By all accounts, Janet Yellen was more than qualified for the position is Chair of the Federal Reserve.  Her PhD in economics is from Yale University.  From 1994 to 1997 she was on the Federal Reserve Board of Governors.  In 1997 she served as Chair of Bill Clinton’s Council of Economic Advisors.  From 2004 to 2010 she was the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco (there are twelve regional reserve banks and San Francisco is the second-largest by assets held, next to New York).  She worked her way up in the Federal Reserve after an impressive career and education at the top U.S. schools in economics.  Yet, she was confirmed in the Senate by the narrowest margin in history.

The Federal Reserve is tasked with two goals: maximize employment and stabilize prices (inflation).  The biggest argument against Janet Yellen for her confirmation was she was a “dove”.  A “dove” refers to someone whose economic policy favors low unemployment above the inflation goals.  The opposite of a “dove” is a “hawk” whose focus is more on inflation than unemployment.  Yellen’s goal was unemployment and during her tenure, there was one of the largest drops in unemployment during any Federal Chair’s tenure.  And the other mandate, of keeping inflation stable, she did.