Latest Count On Senate Bernanke Confirmation: Yes=48, No=20, Undecided=32
Here’s Bloomberg’s latest count on the Senate vote on whether to re-confirm Ben Bernanke for another term. His existing term expires Sunday, January 31, so a vote is expected before then. If Bernanke wasn’t confirmed by Sunday Fed vice chairman and voting FOMC member Donald Kohn is a likely person to serve as interim chairman. In the wake of the crisis, Bernanke has fallen out of favor with many Senators looking to sharpen their financial regulatory message in this election year, but those in favor of re-confirming Bernanke has grown as this week has kicked off.