Trump Taps Kevin Warsh to Succeed Powell as Fed Chairman

President Donald Trump plans to nominate Kevin Warsh to the board of the Federal Reserve as a governor and the next chair of the central bank.

If confirmed by the Senate, Warsh would succeed Jerome Powell, whose tenure as chair ends in May.

Trump announced the nomination in a post on social media yesterday morning.

“I have known Kevin for a long period of time, and have no doubt that he will go down as one of the GREAT Fed Chairmen, maybe the best,” Trump wrote.

“On top of everything else, he is ‘central casting,’ and he will never let you down,” the president said.

Trump did not mention Powell in the announcement. But Warsh’s Senate confirmation process will likely be made much more difficult as a result of the pressure campaign Trump has waged against Powell and the bank to drastically lower interest rates.

That campaign has alienated key senators whose support Warsh will need to be confirmed by the closely divided Senate.

Yesterday, Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., a member of the Senate Banking Committee, reaffirmed that he would not back Warsh’s confirmation until a recently opened Justice Department probe of Powell was resolved.

Trump met with Warsh on Thursday in the Oval Office and offered him the Fed chair job, a senior administration official told NBC News. Warsh, 55, already has years of experience serving at the central bank.

From February 2006 until March 2011, he served as a governor on the Fed’s board, nominated to the role by then-President George W. Bush.

During his time on the Fed’s board, Warsh also gained international relations experience as the central bank’s representative to the Group of 20, which as Fed chair could be useful.

The Fed deals frequently with the European Central Bank, Bank of Japan, Bank of England and other critical central banks on matters such as global economic stability or at times of economic turmoil.