was inducted into the American Academy of Political and Social Science, "for his distinguished scholarship on fiscal policy, monetary policy and the distribution of income, and for consistently bringing that knowledge to bear on the public arena." He is a strong proponent of free trade. Blinder has been critical of the public discussion of the US national debt, describing it as generally ranging from "ludicrous to horrific". Political career In 1975, Blinder served as the Deputy Assistant Director of the Congressional Budget Office. In the 1990s, he served on President Bill Clinton's Council of Economic Advisers from January 1993 to June 1994, and as the 15th Vice Chair of the Federal Reserve from June 27, 1994, to January 31, 1996 (more specifically as the Vice Chairman of Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System). As Vice Chairman, Blinder cautioned against raising interest rates too quickly to slow inflation because of the lags in earlier rises feeding through into the economy. He also warned against ignoring the short term costs in terms of unemployment that inflation-fighting could cause. Many have argued that Blinder's stint at the Fed was cut short because of his tendency to challenge chairman Alan Greenspan. In particular, by challenging assumptions, Blinder disrupted “the whole pipeline of Greenspan-arriving-at-decisions.” He was an adviser to Al Gore and John Kerry during their respective presidential campaigns in 2000 and 2004. "Cash for Clunkers" Blinder was an early advocate of a "Cash for Clunkers" program, in which the government buys some of the oldest, most-polluting vehicles and scraps them. In July 2008, he wrote an article in The New York Times advocating such a program, which was implemented by the Obama administration during the summer of 2009. Blinder asserted it could stimulate the economy, benefit the environment, and reduce income inequality. The program was praised by President Obama for "exceeding expectations," but criticized for economic and environmental reasons. Private sector Blinder was a co-founder and a vice-chair of the Promontory Interfinancial Network, LLC. After his service as the vice chairman of the Federal Reserve, Blinder, along with several former regulators, founded a company that offers a number of services that provide a means for depositors (including governmental entities, nonprofits, businesses, as well as individuals such as retirees) to access millions in Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) coverage at a single institution instead of multiple ones. This provides banks that are members