A recent Gallup poll showed that Americans have less faith in the Fed than in the IRS, the EPA, and $_DEITY help us, the CDC.
This shows how badly informed most Americans are (at least the ones that respond to Gallup polls). Why?
If you look back at the recent history of the Fed, the Chairman has been sounding the alarm the whole time. Bernanke (and before him, Greenspan) testified before Congress predicting the oil crisis, the housing bubble, and most especially runaway consumer lending, with great accuracy, deep understanding, and in plenty of time to correct the issues.
Blame for the ensuing economic catastrophes rests squarely on the shoulders of the Democrat leaders who, in the face of the dire warnings, pushed forward their destructive agendae anyway.