Larry Summers Withdraws.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

After months of contentious public debate, Larry Summers has withdrawn his name from consideration to become the next chairman of the Federal Reserve.

President Obama said he spoke with Summers earlier Sunday and accepted his decision.

"Larry was a critical member of my team as we faced down the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, and it was in no small part because of his expertise, wisdom, and leadership that we wrestled the economy back to growth and made the kind of progress we are seeing today," the president said in a statement.
"I will always be grateful to Larry for his tireless work and service on behalf of his country, and I look forward to continuing to seek his guidance and counsel in the future," the president added.

Current Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke's term is set to end in January. Before the appointment can be made official, the Senate is tasked with holding confirmation hearings and voting on the nomination.
While Summers is no stranger to high-profile roles and has a close relationship with Obama, forged in the depths of the financial crisis, he would have been a controversial pick.
During his time as Treasury Secretary in the Clinton administration, Summers earned his reputation as a deregulator. Summers urged Congress to repeal parts of a Depression-era rule called Glass-Steagall, which prevented financial institutions from simultaneously acting as investment banks, commercial banks and insurance companies. This move paved the way for banks to become larger than ever.
Also in the late '90s, Summers pushed back against a movement to regulate complex derivatives. Some say, both those decisions played a role in precipitating the 2008 financial crisis.
If Obama had picked Summers, one of his economic mentors, the confirmation hearings could have been dicey. In July, a group of Democratic Senators sent a letter to Obama urging him to choose top contender Janet Yellen, who currently serves as vice chair at the Fed.
"Our nation badly needs a chairman with a solid record as a bank regulator," the letter said.