Dodd: Bernanke confirmation 'not necessarily' a foregone conclusion

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's confirmation is not a foregone conclusion in the Senate Banking Committee, says Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.).

"Not necessarily, not necessarily. We'll see how members react," Dodd, the chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, told liberal blogger Mike Stark when asked if Bernanke's confirmation is a sure thing. Dodd refused to speculate whether or not the Senate would confirm him.

The Banking panel is expected to hold hearings on Bernanke's confirmation the first week of December. President Barack Obama nominated him to a second term as head of the central bank in August and Dodd has hoped for a vote on the nomination by year's end. Hearings on his nomination are slated to begin soon.

While it is expected that Bernanke will be confirmed, the Federal Reserve has drawn increasing criticism from Congress over its powers in the wake of the financial crisis. A House panel on Thursday approved a measure sponsored by Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) and opposed by Bernanke and the Obama administration that would require audits of the Fed.

Dodd did not say whether or not other he thinks Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and National Economic Council Chairman Larry Summers should keep their jobs. Like Bernanke, Geithner and Summers have taken much criticism recently over crafting economic policies some say do not focus enough on middle-class Americans.

"I'm inclined to be supportive," Dodd said of Bernanke's nomination. "I think he has done a far better job in the last couple of years than he did initially."

Dodd has praised Bernanke in the past even though new financial regulations his panel is considering would curtail the Fed's powers in the financial system.

"I have a lot of respect for him. He's been terrific through this problem," Dodd said of Bernanke on CNBC last week. "He's really been tremendously helpful in helping us sort through these ideas, and I have great, great admiration for him."

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