UPDATED 13:39 PM EST, December 12, 2012
As President Barack Obama and Congress agonize over strengthening the economy without fattening the $16 trillion national debt, the Federal Reserve chugs steadily along on its own course of keeping interest rates low and printing money to stimulate growth.
The central bank's impact on the economy is huge. Yet it doesn't get as much attention as the fiery White House-congressional battles over the "fiscal cliff," taxes and spending.
