The Federal Reserve last week published oral interviews with more than 50 policy makers and staff that were conducted in conjunction with its centennial in 2013.
The trove includes conversation with former chairs Paul Volcker, Alan Greenspan and Janet Yellen, governors and senior staff, whose recollections span a half century of steering the world’s most powerful central bank.
Here are some of the memories that caught our eye:
Just a Puff
Laurence Meyer, a Fed governor appointed by President Bill Clinton who served from 1996 to 2002, got a question he did not expect during his FBI background check.
“When I met the FBI agent, the very first question he asked was, “Have you ever smoked marijuana?” The question came out of the blue. I never thought he would ask that question. I sat there and I paused for a second and thought, “What should I say?” I could say “no” and nobody would ever find out. I was at a party once or twice, and I had a puff. It wasn’t important. But I said to myself, “No, you don’t want to lie here.” So I said, “Yes.”
“I explained the context. Honestly, I had sleepless nights wondering whether that was going to be important. Then I dreamed that I honestly saw the headline in the paper: “President Clinton Withdraws Nomination from Pot-Smoking Professor.” And then I said, ‘Clinton? Not a chance.’”
You’ll Never Have Another Job
It was 1965. President Lyndon Johnson was in the White House and Fed Governor Dewey Daane was heading home from the airport in Washington when his driver informed him that he was wanted over at the U.S. Treasury for a quick word with an official who “wanted a few minutes” of Daane’s time.
“I walked into his office. This official looked up at me and said, ‘If you vote for the discount rate increase, the President will see to it that you never have another job, and I’ll help the President.’ That was his greeting.”
He voted for the increase anyway.
Sliced Up Like ‘Kill Bill’
Frederic Mishkin, governor from 2006 to 2008, thought of dissenting over monetary policy decisions but decided against it after talking with then-Chairman Ben Bernanke, because “if I dissented it would create a lot of problems for him and for the institution. My view in that context was that you provide your views, but you’re part of a team.’’