Sen. Bernie Sanders said Thursday that the Senate sent a clear signal to the Federal Reserve with an historic number of “no” votes against confirming Ben Bernanke to a second term as chairman of the central bank.  The Senate confirmed Bernanke by a vote of 70 to 30, more “no” votes than were ever cast in opposition to a nominee for Fed chairman.  “The Senate vote sends a loud and clear message to the Fed and to Chairman Bernanke: Start representing the needs of the middle class and working families, not just Wall Street CEOs. Stop credit card ripoffs. Free up credit for small businesses. Break up big banks, and stop the secrecy surrounding trillions of dollars in blind loans,” said Sanders, a leader of the opposition to Bernanke.

To read the full press release, click here.

To watch the senator's floor speech, click here.