While Federal Reserve vice chair Janet Yellen has made many speeches, her testimony today at a Senate confirmation hearing—slated to start at 10am Eastern Standard Time—will be one of the first times her voice will have the full, market-moving power of the Federal Reserve behind it. Nominated by President Obama to succeed current chairman Ben Bernanke once his term finishes in late January, the diminutive Yellen is arguably on the verge of becoming the most powerful woman in US history.
Her nomination is widely viewed as a foregone conclusion, and her prepared remarks were already released. But Yellen will still face a series of senatorial salvos from across the political spectrum. From the right, she’ll face questions likely to revolve around her commitment to battle inflation. Senators on the left will want to make sure she’s resolved to be a tough regulator of the banking system and a fighter for the unemployed. “Both sides of the aisle have axes to grind,” wrote Morgan Stanley economist Vincent Reinhart.
Here’s a little something we whipped up to help you keep track of the action.
