Jimmy Carter lost the 1980 general election by a landslide to Ronald Reagan, so it's difficult to understand why Joe Biden continues to follow the Carter 'malaise' playbook today. Bettman via Getty Images/Shutterstock Composite: Mark KellyHere we go again. Another meeting of the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy committee, and another press conference at which Chairman Jerome Powell will attempt “to explain our actions and answer your questions.
The public may not be aware that when the Fed raises rates, it does so primarily by raising what it pays to commercial banks and other depository institutions on the reserves they hold at the Fed—which are interchangeable with cash and effectively serve as checking accounts. These funds currently total $3.3 trillion. Since December 2008, they reflect accumulated purchases by the Fed of Treasury debt obligations and mortgage-backed securities.