you can follow the conversation on twitter with the hashtag ncpluch. we will have audience questions as much as possible and would like to introduce our guest. we begin with keith epstein. scott sporey , rick dunham, donna linewand, timothy allman, and michelle smith, assistant to the chairman with the federal reserve. charbonneau, bob cardin, thank you. dave skidmore, allyson fitzgerald, she is with bloomberg. she is vice chair of the npc speaker committee. beckner.ve that is our head table and you can give some applause. [applause] it has been quite a journey for our guest speaker today. the middle-class son of a pharmacist and schoolteacher, he has been an economics professor, the head of the council of economic advisers under president bush, and now our nation's chief central banker. he became a chair in 2006 just in time for the great recession. he was letter reads as nominated by president obama to serve another four-year term. reflecting his stewardship in crisis, he was named time magazine's man of the year in 2009. this journey started south o