Congress, Economic Recovery | featured news

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke makes clear in a letter to a House lawmaker that he thinks the Fed can do more to bolster the economic recovery and help reduce unemployment.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told Congress Friday that there's increasing evidence that a "self-sustaining" economic recovery is taking hold, but he said the Fed's $600 billion Treasury bond-buying program is still needed because it will take years for unemployment to drop to more normal levels.

Republicans and Democrats joined forces in the Senate on Monday to deliver the most significant bipartisan vote since President Obama took office, advancing a plan to extend tax cuts for virtually every American and to boost the economic recovery.

President Barack Obama said Tuesday's elections, in which Republicans won control of the House of Representatives and gained seats in the Senate, signaled that Americans were frustrated with the pace of economic recovery.

Fed chief Bernanke expressed confidence to Congress that the unfolding economic recovery will have staying power, but not fast enough to relieve high unemployment quickly.

Growing discontent over the economy, recovery efforts turn into a wave of criticism and outright anger directed at the administration.