Senate Confirms Kevin Warsh to Federal Reserve Board, Paving Way for Chairmanship
Lawmakers voted along party lines to approve Warsh for the 14-year governor term. A cloture vote to advance the nomination passed 49-44 on Monday, clearing the path for the confirmation.
Tommy Flynn
WASHINGTON — The Senate confirmed Kevin Warsh as a member of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors on Tuesday, positioning the former Fed official to succeed Jerome Powell as chairman once his nomination for the four-year chair term receives final approval.
Lawmakers voted along party lines to approve Warsh for the 14-year governor term. A cloture vote to advance the nomination passed 49-44 on Monday, clearing the path for the confirmation. The Senate is expected to take up the separate vote on Warsh’s concurrent nomination as Fed chair as early as Wednesday. Powell’s term as chairman ends Friday.
Warsh, 49, served as a Fed governor from 2006 to 2011 under Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama. A lawyer and financier, he has advised President Donald Trump on economic matters and was nominated earlier this year to lead the central bank.
Trump has pressed the Fed for lower interest rates to support growth. Warsh has signaled plans for closer coordination between the Fed, Treasury, and the administration on non-monetary issues, while pursuing a smaller balance sheet to enable lower policy rates over time.
The confirmation comes as the Fed faces pressure from elevated oil prices tied to the Iran conflict. The current target range for the federal funds rate stands at 3.50 percent to 3.75 percent. Markets now price only about a one-in-three chance of a rate cut by December, with some analysts anticipating possible hikes if inflation persists.
Warsh’s first opportunity to influence policy as chairman would come at the Federal Open Market Committee meeting scheduled for June 16-17.
Powell is expected to remain on the Fed board as a governor after stepping down as chairman. The Senate Banking Committee advanced Warsh’s nomination on a 13-11 party-line vote last month.
The moves mark a significant shift at the nation’s central bank as the Trump administration seeks greater alignment on monetary policy amid ongoing economic challenges from the Middle East conflict and domestic growth priorities.
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