Washington Examiner columnist Tiana Lowe Doescher said that Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell is “very happy” about Kevin Warsh’s nomination because it gives him a “permission structure” to leave.
President Donald Trump announced Friday morning that he is nominating Warsh, a former Federal Reserve governor, to serve as the next chairman of the central bank’s Board of Governors. Warsh would replace Powell when Powell’s term is up in May.
“Someone very happy today about the Warsh nomination is Powell because it sort of creates a permission structure for him to finally leave,” Doescher said on Newsmax’s First Edition. “Powell doesn’t want to be stuck at the Fed in a non-chair capacity until 2028 just to stick it to Trump.”
“Warsh is a good institutional guy. He checks off all the right boxes, and means that hopefully Trump can dial back the more out there attacks on the Fed’s independence,” she added.
Doescher argued the White House made the Fed “political” by directing the Justice Department to launch a criminal investigation into Powell.
She said there wasn’t “market panic” after the Justice Department launched a criminal investigation into Fed governor Lisa Cook over allegations of mortgage fraud, arguing that such allegations constitute a “legitimate cause” to remove a governor.
“Everyone understands mortgage fraud is a legitimate cause to remove a Fed governor. That’s a crime. If you did it or if I did it, we’d all be in trouble,” she said.
Doescher said the investigation into Powell is “very different.”
“Going after Jerome Powell over some anodyne testimony over a constitutionally authorized renovation of the almost century-old headquarters that is very different,” she said. “Everyone understood that was about infringing on the Fed’s very important independence from political pressure.”
TRUMP NOMINATES KEVIN WARSH TO BE NEXT FED CHAIRMAN
She contrasted Powell with Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, arguing that both of them value “preserving” their respective institutions.
“He’s almost John Roberts, right, he cares so much about preserving the institution itself, but it forces him into oddly political positions,” Doescher said.