"We've got low inflation, record low interest rates, falling unemployment and rapid growth".
Does he really have the best inflation record? Michael Feroli, an economist at JPMorgan Chase, crunched the numbers.
The Fed's inflation record is good and its response to the crisis has been creative and bold.
But central banks will have to guess and, as the Bank's inflation record suggests, they are not always right.
Mr. Bernanke, clearly piqued, responded, "You call me a dove, but my inflation record is the best of any chairman in the postwar period".
No matter how one evaluates the Fed's overall performance, the inflation record since 2009 has actually been quite consistent with its stated target.
Despite the slowed inflation recorded by the index, overall spending for pharmaceuticals is still on the rise, up 8.3percentt in 2006, according to IMS.
Well, maybe in some respects I am, but on the other hand, my inflation record is the best of any Federal Reserve chairman in the postwar period, or at least one of the best, about 2 percent average inflation".
That was in line with the consensus forecast in a poll of economists by Reuters, although some had predicted prices could be down on a year earlier and mark a return to the negative inflation recorded in April.
So if a bubble appears to be forming in a stockmarket, a central bank should raise rates even if inflation remains under control something which Alan Greenspan may wish he had done a couple of years ago.The study shows that by paying more attention to asset prices, central bankers can actually improve their long-term inflation record.
