Time Should Have Chosen Mario Draghi as 2012 Person of the Year

ABSTRACT: Time magazine has chosen President Barack Obama as its 2012 Person of the Year. If I were selecting the winner, I would have opted for Mario Draghi. Here is why.


Time magazine has chosen President Barack Obama as its 2012 Person of the Year. If I were selecting the winner, I would have opted for Mario Draghi. As head of the European Central Bank, Draghi significantly influences monetary policy in 17 European countries, containing more than 330 million people. In this role, the Italian banker helped forestall a major world economic crisis in 2012 by pumping money into European banks. As important, he established the OMT program, which authorized the ECB to buy an unlimited number of short term bonds from distressed member nations. Draghi's actions allowed struggling European countries keep their borrowing costs in check while at the same time protecting the Euro currency.

Even more notable, Draghi managed to convince quarrelsome member nations to agree to a unified plan to save the Euro. This was no easy task, as leaders like Germany's Angela Merkel and France's François Hollande differ significantly with regards to their economic beliefs and political aims. The European media is keenly aware of Draghi's accomplishments. The Financial Times recently selected him as its Person of the Year.

#politics #finance #2012 #awards #Time

-- Anthony Hopper