Ex-Fed Chair Greenspan: Controlling COVID Is The Only Way To Save Economy

Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said he’s “never seen anything like” the economic challenges incoming President-elect Joe Biden will face amid the pandemic, CNN reports.

Greenspan, 94, wasn’t working in finance at the time of the Great Depression, but he did live through it, CNN writes.

He was head of the Fed from 1987 to 2006, which is the second-longest tenure for that role.

Greenspan said he thought it was possible that things could start to return to normal by the spring — but only if the surging virus infections are tempered. The recent promising news of vaccines with above 90 percent effectiveness might not be enough otherwise.

He said there needed to be more action on another stimulus bill, which has been gridlocked for months now as lawmakers in Congress continue to disagree on the particulars.

He said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi had good ideas but that Congress just needed to actually implement them going forward to help buoy American citizens still struggling financially.

“I’m not convinced at all that we have enough information to know how to deal with this type of problem,” Greenspan said, according to CNN, also saying there could be “unintended consequences” for society.

Leaders of several major companies have spoken out recently about what they expect from the incoming Biden administration in January, with Microsoft President Brad Smith saying he hoped to see more coordination with other countries on issues from climate change to regulation, saying there was a need to move into new discussions about how to do things instead of why the country can’t do them.

Meanwhile, the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) wants to see more of a competitive tax and regulatory system, more investment in infrastructure and immigration reform efforts. And the U.S. Travel Association, which has been hit hard by the tumultuous pandemic, wanted to see more assistance for the beleaguered industry.