President Donald Trump said Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is no longer being considered as a replacement for Jerome Powell as Federal Reserve Chair.
“I love Scott, but he wants to stay where he is,” Trump said Tuesday in a CNBC interview Tuesday morning. “I’ll take him off, because I asked him just last night, ‘Is this something you want? Nope, I want to stay where I am.’”
Trump said he’s considering former Fed governor Kevin Warsh, top White House economist Kevin Hassett and two other people for the position, whom he didn’t identify.
Trump has been critical of Powell, because the Fed hasn’t lowered interest rates this year. Trump commonly refers to Powell as “too late,” “a numbskull” and “a complete moron.” Although Powell is the highest-ranking Fed official and has considerable sway, he’s just one of 12 people who vote on rate decisions.
But Trump’s constant criticism of the Fed and advocacy for significantly lower rates have raised concerns about political interference in the central bank’s decision-making, which has long operated independently.
Lower rates may give Trump a boost from voters who cannot currently afford mortgages and other loans, it could hurt the economy if it gives way to higher inflation.
At the conclusion of last week’s monetary policy meeting, the Fed left rates unchanged. Powell told reporters he believed that was the appropriate move because the economic outlook has been clouded by tariffs, among other factors.
But the decision wasn’t unanimous: Fed Governor Christopher Waller, who has been floated as Trump’s potential pick to lead the Fed, and Fed Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman cast dissenting votes, favoring a quarter-point cut instead.
Later that week, Fed Governor Adriana Kugler submitted her resignation, opening up a position for Trump to fill. Trump told CNBC that whomever he picks to replace Kugler will be in the position for just four months.
“I’m going to be announcing that very shortly,” Trump said Tuesday. “It’ll be for the four months, you know, for the short period of time,” he added.
Trump also said his pick for Fed governor could end up being his pick for Fed chair when Jerome Powell’s term expires next year.
Hassett said Monday on CNBC that Bessent is helping lead Trump’s search for Fed chair.
Bessent has also been spearheading trade negotiations. Last week he traveled to Sweden to meet with Chinese trade officials to discuss extending the current tariff rates in place on both countries’ goods. This comes as there’s a looming August 12 deadline for the two sides to extend rates or face higher tariffs.
This story has been updated with additional developments and context.
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