Progressives call on Biden to replace Powell as Federal Reserve chair

A group of progressive lawmakers led by Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is calling on President Biden to replace Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, whose term expires early next year. The lawmakers said Powell, who has served as head of the Central Bank since 2018, has not done enough to address the risks of climate change on the financial system and has weakened regulations.

"At a time when the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is warning of the potential catastrophic and irreversible damage inflicted by a changing climate, we need a leader at the helm that will take bold and decisive action to eliminate climate risk," wrote the group of lawmakers, which includes Representatives Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, Jesus Garcia of Illinois and Mondaire Jones of New York. At the same time, the group accused Powell of "substantially" weakening reforms made in the wake of the Great Recession to regulate big banks.