Viva La Cola!

Founded in January 2009, PubliCola is a blog about Seattle written by journalists who are dedicated to non-partisan, original daily reporting that prioritizes a balanced approach to news. Started by longtime local editor and award-winning reporter Josh Feit, PubliCola is the first online-only news site in state history to get media credentials to cover the state capitol.

PubliCola was off and running. In June 2009, PubliCola hired another award-winning journalist, super-sourced Seattle city hall reporter Erica C. Barnett.

People were afraid that blogging would change journalism. Instead, we believe journalism can change blogging. Twenty-first century journalism may look and feel different, and yes Erica isn't afraid to get cranky, but we're committed to making sure online news still delivers independent, reliable, even-keeled coverage. And most of all, we're committed to making sure the coverage sparks honest civic debate.

Bringing you cola for the people, PubliCola is named after Publius Valerius PubliCola, the alias for the authors of the Federalist Papers—the original bloggers.

x close
The first online-only news site in state history to get media credentials to cover the state capitol and Seattle city hall, PubliCola has been called a “must-read” by the Seattle Post Intelligencer and a hot “New Media Mover and Shaker” by Seattle Magazine—which also cited our own Erica C. Barnett as the city's No. 1 news nerd.

Cantwell Votes ‘No’ on Bernanke

That Washington   January 28, 2010 at 3:24 pm Josh Feit

Sen. Maria Cantwell was one of eleven Democrats to vote ‘Nay’ on Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke’s reconfirmation today, capping her yearlong dissident (and populist) opposition to President Obama’s bank bailout policies.

Sen. Patty Murray voted ‘Yea.’ Here’s the roll call.

Bernanke was reconfirmed, 70-30.

UPDATE: Sen. Cantwell’s press release, where she hypes the legislation she’s co-sponsoring with Sen. John McCain to keep investment bankers’ hands out of commercial banking— is below the fold.

Cantwell Opposes Bernanke Reappointment

Says Fed Chair Failed to Focus on Urgent Need to Get Credit Flowing to Community Banks, Small Businesses

WASHINGTON, DC – Today Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) voted against the reappointment of Ben Bernanke to a second four-year term as chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank. Cantwell’s primary concern is creating jobs by getting capital flowing again to Main Street businesses through community banks. Mr. Bernanke was confirmed in a 70-30 vote. Cantwell said the Fed and Department of Treasury need to aggressively move capital to community banks for small business loans. Urgent action is needed to prevent the next crisis that is bubbling up on Main Street.

“This is not one Fed chairman’s problem or one administration’s problem,” Senator Cantwell said in a Senate floor speech. “My vote against the Fed chairman has to do not with the past but with the future – the future prevention of another bubble, or more bankruptcies.”

The Fed chairman and Treasury should lead the charge for real regulatory reform, without loopholes, Cantwell said. Without their leadership, it will be nearly impossible to change Wall Street dark market activity. Cantwell and Senator John McCain (R-AZ) introduced the Cantwell-McCain Banking Integrity Act, to separate commercial and investment banking, as was done under the Glass-Steagall Act that stabilized the nation’s financial system for decades following the Great Depression.

Cantwell urged the Obama administration to immediately use funds from the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) to infuse capital into small community banks for small business lending. The plan, announced by President Obama in his State of the Union Address, can be done by executive action rather than time-consuming legislation. Community banks should receive $50 billion in TARP funds, not the $30 billion in the White House proposal, she said. Funds should be accessible to small banks that need the infusion to spark local lending. And the program should include incentives to ensure that lending capital directed to community banks actually flows to small business.

“I don’t want to leave the American people with the thought that somehow Wall Street is more important than Main Street,” Cantwell said.

For video of Senator Cantwell’s floor speech, click here.


  • hmmmm

    No analysis?

  • hmmmm

    No analysis?

  • feeder

    Cantwell is so hot.

  • feeder

    Cantwell is so hot.

  • Fat-tailed

    Something I never though I’d write: Maria Cantwell has earned my respect on economic issues with votes like this one. And Patty Murray has been disappointing.

    The Bernanke confirmation is the Iraq War authorization vote of the economic crisis. A yes vote will haunt you as the disaster unwinds.

  • Fat-tailed

    Something I never though I’d write: Maria Cantwell has earned my respect on economic issues with votes like this one. And Patty Murray has been disappointing.

    The Bernanke confirmation is the Iraq War authorization vote of the economic crisis. A yes vote will haunt you as the disaster unwinds.

  • i viola

    Nice work, Maria. She clearly understands economics better than the average Senate stiff. Ben and his printing press will lead to rip roaring inflation.

    Funny that Bernanke’s actions have been cast by some, like Murray, as unpopular but necessary, when in reality all he has done is take the easy path by printing up a storm and buying every crap asset off banks as possible. The populace is crying out for a more restrained fiscal policy and more sounds money! Too make matters worse, Bernanke has politicized the position by lobbying for his re-appointment as a Fed chief as never done before. …I’d consider voting against Murray now that she backed TARP and Bernanke

  • i viola

    Nice work, Maria. She clearly understands economics better than the average Senate stiff. Ben and his printing press will lead to rip roaring inflation.

    Funny that Bernanke’s actions have been cast by some, like Murray, as unpopular but necessary, when in reality all he has done is take the easy path by printing up a storm and buying every crap asset off banks as possible. The populace is crying out for a more restrained fiscal policy and more sounds money! Too make matters worse, Bernanke has politicized the position by lobbying for his re-appointment as a Fed chief as never done before. …I’d consider voting against Murray now that she backed TARP and Bernanke

  • Cascadian

    I respect this vote, even as I’m not sure if it’s the right one. I hate big bank bailouts as much as the next guy (though something had to be done), but the reality is that there’s no one qualified for this position on technical grounds who’s likely to be better from a policy/political point of view. That might be depressing but it’s true.

    I also respect Murray’s vote, for these reasons. This is one where informed people of good conscience could agree with Murray or Cantwell.

  • PCO37

    Maybe Josh is bleary-eyed from last night’s fantastic party – or he needs to go back to 2nd grade math class. There were 11 Democrats and 1 Independent who caucuses w/ Democrats who voted against Bernanke’s reconfirmation. Not 10 Dems.

    Or maybe Josh has a scoop on a Dem Senator about to switch parties.

  • PCO37

    Maybe Josh is bleary-eyed from last night’s fantastic party – or he needs to go back to 2nd grade math class. There were 11 Democrats and 1 Independent who caucuses w/ Democrats who voted against Bernanke’s reconfirmation. Not 10 Dems.

    Or maybe Josh has a scoop on a Dem Senator about to switch parties.

  • Fat-tailed

    “there’s no one qualified for this position on technical grounds who’s likely to be better from a policy/political point of view.”

    1. Paul Krugman
    2. Paul Volcker
    3. Janet Yellen

  • Fat-tailed

    “there’s no one qualified for this position on technical grounds who’s likely to be better from a policy/political point of view.”

    1. Paul Krugman
    2. Paul Volcker
    3. Janet Yellen

  • Ba Deep Deep

    From an economic standpoint, refusing to renew Bernanke is sheer idiocy. Randomly shoving economic policy into the political arena with votes like these make the Fed beholden to Congress in a really uncomfortable way–we learned with Nixon/Burns and the ’81 fallout that having Fed policy beholden to political interests can only turn out badly. Fed chairs should be appointed for life, like Supreme Court Justices.

    And anyway, Bernanke more or less saved the economy from total collapse by taking over the failing banks. Granted, the oversight of that money was something of a debacle, but without the bailout, a substantial proportion of the entire economy would have totally crumbled. Instead of vetoing Bernanke for effectively bailing out the entire country, write some legislation that will prevent sloppy bailout procedure in the future (which, to her credit, Cantwell’s been doing).

    @i viola, the Fed doesn’t do fiscal policy, it does monetary policy. And part of the way it does that is by increasing the money supply to get people to spend. That does lead to inflation, but it sure beats the alternative (namely, a shrinking economy, and soaring unemployment).

    @Fat-tailed, why those three?

  • Josh Feit

    PCO37,

    You’re right. 11 Democrats voted ‘Nay.’

    1) Begich (D-AK)
    2) Boxer (D-CA)
    3) Cantwell (D-WA)
    4) Dorgan (D-ND)
    5) Feingold (D-WI)
    6) Franken (D-MN)
    7) Harkin (D-IA)

    8)Kaufman (D-DE)
    9) Merkley (D-OR)
    10) Specter (D-PA)
    11) Whitehouse (D-RI)

    And 1 Independent:

    Sanders (I-VT)

  • Ba Deep Deep

    From an economic standpoint, refusing to renew Bernanke is sheer idiocy. Randomly shoving economic policy into the political arena with votes like these make the Fed beholden to Congress in a really uncomfortable way–we learned with Nixon/Burns and the ’81 fallout that having Fed policy beholden to political interests can only turn out badly. Fed chairs should be appointed for life, like Supreme Court Justices.

    And anyway, Bernanke more or less saved the economy from total collapse by taking over the failing banks. Granted, the oversight of that money was something of a debacle, but without the bailout, a substantial proportion of the entire economy would have totally crumbled. Instead of vetoing Bernanke for effectively bailing out the entire country, write some legislation that will prevent sloppy bailout procedure in the future (which, to her credit, Cantwell’s been doing).

    @i viola, the Fed doesn’t do fiscal policy, it does monetary policy. And part of the way it does that is by increasing the money supply to get people to spend. That does lead to inflation, but it sure beats the alternative (namely, a shrinking economy, and soaring unemployment).

    @Fat-tailed, why those three?

  • Josh Feit

    PCO37,

    You’re right. 11 Democrats voted ‘Nay.’

    1) Begich (D-AK)
    2) Boxer (D-CA)
    3) Cantwell (D-WA)
    4) Dorgan (D-ND)
    5) Feingold (D-WI)
    6) Franken (D-MN)
    7) Harkin (D-IA)

    8)Kaufman (D-DE)
    9) Merkley (D-OR)
    10) Specter (D-PA)
    11) Whitehouse (D-RI)

    And 1 Independent:

    Sanders (I-VT)

  • Fat-tailed

    @Ba Deep Deep — No particular love of any of those three… just trying to respond to the notion that There Is No Alternative to Bernanke. Not clear to me, though, why central banking should be independent of the political process. I understand it works better for bankers and debt-holders to keep inflation in check, but it’s hardly evident that the balance between inflation and job creation is handled way by a supposedly non-political Fed. I could stand to see some populism tried at this point.

  • Fat-tailed

    @Ba Deep Deep — No particular love of any of those three… just trying to respond to the notion that There Is No Alternative to Bernanke. Not clear to me, though, why central banking should be independent of the political process. I understand it works better for bankers and debt-holders to keep inflation in check, but it’s hardly evident that the balance between inflation and job creation is handled way by a supposedly non-political Fed. I could stand to see some populism tried at this point.

  • seabos84

    cantwell voted for cloture, which means that the people who wanted to fillibuster George Bush’s Wall Street Lackey couldn’t fillibuster — then she voted no!
    ( remember when she pulled this stunt on:
    1. alito, or
    2. roberts,
    3. huh? I’m too busy worshipping at phony alters to keep track of stuff that matters.)
    ((pst! should we mention her crap votes on drug importation or on acorn, OR, would that be negative, cynical, angry …??))

    rmm.

  • seabos84

    cantwell voted for cloture, which means that the people who wanted to fillibuster George Bush’s Wall Street Lackey couldn’t fillibuster — then she voted no!
    ( remember when she pulled this stunt on:
    1. alito, or
    2. roberts,
    3. huh? I’m too busy worshipping at phony alters to keep track of stuff that matters.)
    ((pst! should we mention her crap votes on drug importation or on acorn, OR, would that be negative, cynical, angry …??))

    rmm.

  • Lisa

    Thank you, Maria.

    I am glad some democrats can stand up and call a spade a spade.

  • Lisa

    Thank you, Maria.

    I am glad some democrats can stand up and call a spade a spade.

  • Cascadian

    I respect this vote, even as I'm not sure if it's the right one. I hate big bank bailouts as much as the next guy (though something had to be done), but the reality is that there's no one qualified for this position on technical grounds who's likely to be better from a policy/political point of view. That might be depressing but it's true.

    I also respect Murray's vote, for these reasons. This is one where informed people of good conscience could agree with Murray or Cantwell.