Here's a better explanation of the dual mandate than the Wikipedia entry Baker points to.If Bernanke Did Not Know the Fed's Mission, Would That Be News?
Not at the WSJ, nor it seems anywhere else. Yesterday, Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke referred to the "our dual mandate, which is growth and inflation." In fact, the dual mandate is full employment (defined as 4.0 percent unemployment) and price stability. Presumably Bernanke had unemployment in mind when he said "growth," but it striking that he would not use the right term. The two are of course not synonymous.
UPDATE: More grist for the mill here.
