President Donald Trump said Thursday he will announce his pick to replace Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell on Friday.
Speaking to reporters on the red carpet for first lady Melania Trump’s new movie, “Melania,” Trump was asked how soon he would name a new Fed chair.
“Tomorrow morning,” the president said. “I’ll be announcing the Fed chair tomorrow morning.”
Former Federal Reserve Governor Kevin Warsh has emerged as a leading contender to replace Powell, meeting with Trump at the White House on Thursday, according to people familiar with the matter.
TRUMP CALLS FED’S POWELL A ‘MORON’ AFTER CENTRAL BANK HOLDS INTEREST RATES STEADY
Warsh served on the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors from 2006 to 2011, placing him at the center of the central bank’s response to the 2007-09 financial crisis. During his tenure, he represented the Fed at the Group of Twenty, served as an emissary to economies across Asia, and oversaw the institution’s internal operations as administrative governor.
Before joining the Fed, Warsh was a senior economic adviser to President George W. Bush and earlier built a career on Wall Street at Morgan Stanley. He was among Trump’s leading candidates to replace former Fed Chair Janet Yellen in 2017 before Trump ultimately selected Powell. More recently, Warsh was considered for Treasury secretary before Trump chose former hedge fund chief Scott Bessent.
Trump sharply criticized Powell earlier Thursday, arguing the U.S. should have significantly lower interest rates “now that even this moron admits inflation is no longer a threat.”
FED HOLDS INTEREST RATES STEADY, PAUSING RATE CUTS AMID ECONOMIC UNCERTAINTY
“He is costing America Hundreds of Billions of Dollars a year in totally unnecessary and uncalled for INTEREST EXPENSE,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “Because of the vast amounts of money flowing into our Country because of Tariffs, we should be paying the LOWEST INTEREST RATE OF ANY COUNTRY IN THE WORLD.”
Although Trump nominated Jerome Powell to lead the Federal Reserve in 2017, he has since emerged as one of Powell’s most vocal critics, repeatedly urging the central bank to cut rates to stimulate the economy.
Over the past year, Trump has intensified his pressure campaign, publicly rebuking Powell and at times resorting to personal insults to express his frustration with the Fed’s policy decisions. What began as a dispute over interest rate policy has escalated into a full-blown confrontation, marking the most challenging period of Powell’s eight-year tenure as Fed chair.
TRUMP VS THE FEDERAL RESERVE: HOW THE CLASH REACHED UNCHARTED TERRITORY
Earlier this month, the Justice Department opened a criminal investigation into Powell related to his congressional testimony about the Federal Reserve’s ongoing renovation of two Washington buildings. Powell confirmed the probe on Jan. 11 in a video statement, calling it “unprecedented” and describing it as another example of what he characterized as Trump’s threats toward the central bank.
After days of private consultations with advisors, Powell’s decision to address the investigation publicly marked a notable departure from his typically restrained approach. Appearing before reporters Wednesday for the first time since the probe was launched, Powell said he would not respond to statements from the administration and would not discuss the investigation.
The clash comes as the Supreme Court weighs the president’s authority to remove sitting Fed Governor Lisa Cook.
Fox News’ Jacqui Heinrich and Amanda Macias contributed to this report.
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