Word: volckerism
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 1980-1989
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...most accounts, Volcker ranks as the best-known chairman in the Fed's history. His bald pate and halo of cigar smoke became a familiar sight on magazine covers and TV screens, while his name frequently cropped up in everyday household discussions of mortgage rates and car loans. Overseas, his willingness to involve his agency in other countries' economic concerns earned the U.S. large amounts of economic goodwill. Even bankers like former Citicorp Chairman Walter Wriston, who tangled with Volcker on many issues, admired the Fed chief's willingness to do the dirty work of wringing inflation...
...need for Volcker's brand of inflation fighting arose during the aftermath of two oil shocks, which had sent prices zooming out of control by 1979. G. William Miller, who had served only 17 months as Fed chief, was proving ineffective against the growing crisis. Suddenly one day in July, while Treasury Under Secretary Anthony Solomon was cooling off in his backyard pool, he got an urgent phone call from President Jimmy Carter, who wanted suggestions for a new Fed boss. "Paul Volcker," Solomon replied with little hesitation. "Who's that?" Carter asked, not recognizing the name of the head...
After the bailout of Mexico, the next major challenge for Volcker came in the summer of 1984, when Continental Illinois, once the seventh largest bank in the U.S., suffered a relentless run on its deposits after word got out about its immense pile of bad loans. To stave off a crisis, Volcker helped assemble a package of $4.5 billion in fresh commercial-bank loans for Continental. "This is a very historic thing," remarked a New York City banker. "This is the first time the Fed has been party to any kind of statement that 'nobody is going to lose.' " While...
When inflation-free economic growth returned to the U.S., Volcker's image underwent a transformation. The central banker became a folk hero of sorts. Citizens started approaching Volcker on the street and thanking him for what he had done. Volcker was sitting in a coffee shop during an outing in Montana when a local rancher in a Stetson and faded jeans suddenly recognized him and ( ambled up. It looked as if the cowboy might be aiming to pick a fight over monetary policy, but instead he pulled out a $10 bill and asked Volcker to autograph...
...Volcker's toughest customers in the past year or so have been the Reagan appointees on the Federal Reserve Board. In February 1986 Volcker came up on the losing side when his colleagues voted 4 to 3 to cut the discount rate that the Fed charges on loans to member banks. The chairman likes debate, but was furious to lose a vote and considered quitting. "The second floor ((where Volcker has his office)) was rocking a bit," says a former assistant. Following the episode, the official who resigned was not Volcker but his rival, Vice Chairman Preston Martin...