Obama Taps Two For Fed Board

President Barack Obama announced Tuesday that he will be nominating Jerome Powell and Jeremy Stein for the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors.

Powell previously served as a Treasury official in George H. Bush administration. Stein is an Economics Professor at Harvard and served as a member of MIT’s finance faculty for a decade.

“I am grateful that these individuals have agreed to serve their nation at this important time for our economy,” Obama said in a statement. “Their distinguished backgrounds and experience coupled with their impressive knowledge of economic and monetary policy make them tremendously qualified to serve in these important roles.”


Obama Hits Romney On Transparency Record

President Obama’s re-elect team is highlighting a new Washington Post editorial that blasted GOP hopeful Mitt Romney for refusing to disclose his tax returns or the identities of his bundlers.

The Obama for America campaign today blasted out a link to the editorial, which accused Romney of being “zero for two when it comes to transparency in campaigning.”

The editorial described Romney’s remark this past week that he has no plans to release his tax forms as “unacceptable.”

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Report: White House Energy Program Politicized

The Obama administration’s $80 billion program to distribute loans to companies researching and developing clean energy was marred by political considerations, according to a report Sunday from the Washington Post.

Citing internal memos and emails, the Post concludes that the White House granted easier access to investors who were politically connected.

The program came under scrutiny after the loan-backed Solyndra, a California-based solar energy company that President Obama visited, went bankrupt.

The full report can be read here.

South Carolina GOP Reacts To DOJ Decision

The Justice Department announced yesterday that it will block a new voter ID law in South Carolina that requires voters to present a valid photo ID at the polls.

Critics of the new law have argued that it will discourage and prevent minorities in the state from casting ballots.

Today, South Carolina Republican Party Chairman Chad Connelly responded to the news:

“The Obama administration has once again decided that Washington knows best. Requiring voter identification is a common sense safeguard. This administration continues to trample on the states, and voters know that every potential Republican nominee would be one thousand times better than Barack Obama.”

Reid Names Conferees To Negotiate Payroll Extension With GOP

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) announced Friday morning that he has appointed a quartet of Senators to work with House Republicans next month on extending the current payroll tax holiday through the end of 2012:

Here is a statement from Reid:

“I am appointing Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, Senator Jack Reed, Senator Ben Cardin, and Joint Economic Committee Chairman Bob Casey as conferees to negotiate a year-long extension of the payroll tax cut, as well as unemployment insurance and Medicare payments for physicians. All four are leaders in our caucus with a proven history of forging bipartisan agreements. I am confident that they will work expeditiously with our colleagues in the House.”