“I am confident that we will meet whatever challenges the future may bring.”

The central bank needs to be able to make policy without short term political concerns.

A money-financed tax cut is essentially equivalent to Milton Friedman’s famous ‘helicopter drop’ of money.

The American people are among the most productive in the world. We have the best technologies. We have – great universities. We have entrepreneurs.

The Federal Reserve is not currently forecasting a recession.

The more important reason is that the research itself provides an important long-run perspective on the issues that we face on a day-to-day basis.

I come from Main Street, from a small town that’s really depressed.

Every effort needs to be made to try and offset the costs of Katrina and Rita by reductions in other government programs, especially those that are wasteful, duplicative and ineffective.

I don’t see much evidence of an equity bubble.

Education – lifelong education for everyone – from toddlers to workers well advanced in their careers – is indeed an excellent investment for individuals and society as a whole.

It must be awfully frustrating to get a small raise at work and then have it all eaten by a higher cost of commuting.

The impact on the broader economy and financial markets of the problems in the subprime markets seems likely to be contained.

Our mission, as set forth by the Congress is a critical one: to preserve price stability, to foster maximum sustainable growth in output and employment, and to promote a stable and efficient financial system that serves all Americans well and fairly.

If you are not happy with yourself, even the loftiest achievements won’t bring you much satisfaction.

Developments in financial markets can have broad economic effects felt by many outside the markets.

Nobody likes to fail but failure is an essential part of life and of learning. If your uniform isn’t dirty, you haven’t been in the game.

September and October of 2008 was the worst financial crisis in global history, including the Great Depression.

I didn’t get out of coaching to get back into it. This is my next challenge and I’m planning to work hard at it.

There is a tendency at every important but difficult crossroad to pretend that it’s not really there.

Consistent effort is a consistent challenge.

Then the challenge is, once you left brain it and build it, then when you’re on stage you have to know it so well that you can get lost in it. I don’t want to be onstage looking like a robot,

God knew we would make mistakes. Life is all about mistakes. It is constant change and growth. Our greatest challenges in life will one day be known to us as our greatest teachers.

One of the most important disciplines in journalism is to challenge your working premises.

You have a challenge; never quit!

[on BBC’s Sherlock] It’s a rare challenge, both for the audience and an actor, to take part in something with this level of intelligence and wit. You have to really enjoy it. It’s a form of mental and physical gymnastics.