Trump picks Kevin Warsh to chair Federal Reserve amid pressure campaign to cut rates
CBSN
President Trump said Friday he is nominating Kevin Warsh to serve as the next chair of the Federal Reserve Board, filling a powerful economic policy role as the president pushes for lower interest rates. In:
President Trump said Friday he is nominating Kevin Warsh to serve as the next chair of the Federal Reserve Board, filling a powerful economic policy role as the president pushes for lower interest rates.
Mr. Trump made the announcement on his Truth Social platform.
Warsh was a member of the Fed's board for five years starting in 2006, when former President George W. Bush named him to the central bank right before the financial crisis. In recent years, he has worked with billionaire investor Stanley Druckenmiller and held academic positions, including at the Hoover Institution.
If confirmed by the Senate, Warsh will helm a Federal Reserve that has faced months of intense pressure from Mr. Trump to dramatically slash rates — a move that could boost economic growth, but at the risk of sparking higher inflation. The Fed has lowered rates three times since September, most recently on Dec. 10, but Fed officials indicated in a projection earlier this month that they expect just one cut this year.
Warsh suggested earlier this year he's open to lower interest rates, and he's been deeply critical of the Fed's handling of inflation in recent years, arguing the central bank has a "credibility crisis" and is in need of "regime change." But he has also called it "essential" that the Fed maintain its independence over monetary policy.

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