A few surprising things about Bernanke you don’t know

But not all the dealings with Congress were public. Before the U.S. government took control of AIG, a giant insurer on the verge of collapse from selling credit-default swap contracts whose debt was owned by many banks and mutual funds, Bernanke and then-Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson met with a group of lawmakers.  At the end of the meeting, said Bernanke, one senior senator thanked him and Paulson for coming and told them, “‘Understand that nothing you heard constitutes congressional approval; this is your decision. This is your responsibility.’ ”

About his Washington experience, Bernanke said, “As bad as you think public policy is, it’s worse.” But he’s not bitter or surprised.  “If you’re working on policy you have to be scrutinized… ‘It is important for all policymakers to explain why they’re doing what they’re doing and to be ready to accept criticism and scrutiny,” said Bernanke. He added that those who aren’t comfortable with that shouldn’t be involved in public policy.

LEAVING THE FED

Bernanke served two terms as Fed chairman under two presidents. (President Barack Obama renominated him in early 2010). He left after his last term ended in early 2014.

“It was enough,” said Bernanke, who said he had told Obama he wasn’t interested in another term. “I’m glad to be a civilian again.” Now when he picks up a newspaper and reads that there’s a serious problem, he said he “hopes someone does something about it.”

LOVES BASEBALL

At his going-away party at the Fed, Bernanke said the staff presented a baseball card with his picture on it and the stats of his Fed career, including the number of times he went before Congress.

Turns out Bernanke loves baseball and is a regular at Washington Nationals games. “All economists love baseball statistics, which go back to the 1880s,” he said.

And he seems to love the story he tells about talking with Nationals right fielder Jason Werth at the ballpark. When he was taken around by former manager Davey Johnson to meet the players, Werth, who’s 6-foot-6 and towers over the Fed chairman, asked, “ ‘What’s the deal with QE? “ referring to the Fed’s quantitative easing policy of buying U.S. Treasuries and mortgage-backed securities to stimulate growth. The LPL audience laughed.

Bernanke also recalled his lunch with actor Paul Giametti, who played Bernanke in the HBO movie “Too Big to Fail,” about the financial crisis. They talked about baseball because Giametti’s father, Bart, had been baseball commissioner.

HAS A SENSE OF HUMOR

The Jason Werth story wasn’t the only one that got laughs at the LPL conference.  Here’s another: Bernanke recalled the criticism the Fed received including one from Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, who also advised people to invest in gold because Fed policy would lead to runaway inflation. “How has that worked out for you?” The audience clapped.

HAS WRITTEN A BOOK

Hundreds of books have been written about the financial crisis, including books by two Treasury secretaries, who are members of the Federal Reserve Board. Now Bernanke, probably the single most important policymaker during the crisis, has his own. “The Courage to Act: A Memoir of a Crisis and Its Aftermath” is scheduled to be released on Oct. 5.