Who Caused the Great Recession?

For those who believe that the Bush administration, the housing bubble and lax regulation caused the Great Recession, a new book, written by a Federal Reserve economist places the blame squarely on the shoulders of… Ben Bernanke.

According to Robert Hetzel the Federal Reserve mismanaged monetary policy in 2008 and caused a financial crisis that did not have to be as severe or as protracted as it has turned out to be.

Here is a link to an essay on Hetzel’s book by James Pethokoukis.

Of course, President Obama’s governing narrative is that the Bush administration was a modern version of the Hoover administration and that he, a modern day FDR, will get us out of the ditch.

It has not worked out that way. Still, the story has captured far too many minds and, translated into votes, has caused considerable damage to the country.

At the risk of sounding conspiratorial I would ask this question: did Bernanke just make a dumb mistake in 2008 or was he trying to help elect a Democratic president by ensuring a financial crisis?

Today, is the Bernanke Fed somehow trying to keep stock prices up in order to help out the Obama re-election campaign?

If this is true, expect a bad stock market after the election, no matter who wins.