Brian Beutler September 22, 2011, 6:20 AM

Politicians hectoring the Federal Reserve is nothing new. Members of both parties have done it based on disagreements over myriad financial and economic issue over the years. In that way Tuesday’s letter from GOP leadership to Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke, warning him against pursuing more monetary stimulus, was part of a storied American tradition.

In other ways it was extraordinary. This came from leaders speaking for an entire party, and more-than-plausibly represents an effort to prevent the Fed from improving the economy for political reasons.

In the end, the effort proved ineffective — the Fed announced a new round of monetary stimulus as expected. But it exposed a widening rift between the GOP and the Fed, which until now had been limited to posturing GOP primary candidates and fringe members of the GOP caucus.

While the members of his party running for President have practically called for Bernanke’s scalp, House Speaker John Boehner praised Bernanke just last week in an interview at the Economic Club of Washington.

“I’m glad he’s there,” Boehner said, “I don’t agree with all his decisions, but he’s got a tough job.”

Now he’s putting public pressure on Bernanke to abandon policies the chairman believes will improve the economy.

And members of his leadership team say Bernanke should get used to it.

“I haven’t noticed the chairman of the Federal Reserve being reticent to offer advice and counsel to the Congress, so he should not be reticent to receive advice and counsel from the Congress,” Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-TX), the conference chair, and co-chair of the joint deficit Super Committee, told reporters Wednesday after the Fed announced its new policy. “As much as I disagree with a number of actions of the Federal Reserve, I desperately don’t want member of Congress conducting monetary policy, but this right now is not your grandfather’s monetary policy.”

Ben Bernanke, Federal Reserve, Jeb Hensarling, John Boehner, Stimulus