It's hard to believe that it's been nearly 3 1/2 years since Ben Bernanke was named as the new Chairman of the Federal Reserve.
Those were much simpler times back then..
The housing market was still rolling along, consumer confidence was still high and most Americans were feeling pretty upbeat about the economy.
That was then, and this is now.
Think about everything that has gone down during Bernanke's first term as Fed Chairman.
The subprime mortgage implosion. The collapse of Lehman Brothers. The collapse of General Motors. The worst recession in a generation. The list goes on and on.
People that I talk to are pretty split on Ben Bernanke and the job he has done in his first term as Fed Chairman.
Some believe that he has done an admirable job in guiding the economy through its roughest patch in 70 years.
Some, on the other hand, believe that his policies will only make things worse for the country down the line.
At this point it seems pretty likely that Bernanke will secure himself a second term as Fed Chairman.
Some prominent Democrats have also been speaking out in recent days, saying that they wouldn't be opposed to the idea of Bernanke having a second term.