White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt is accusing a Republican senator of effectively sabotaging the nations economic prospects by blocking President Donald Trumps nominee to lead the Federal Reserve.
The clash centers on Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., a member of the Senate Banking Committee, who has vowed to oppose any Federal Reserve nominee until the Department of Justice ends its criminal investigation into current Fed Chairman Jerome Powell. According to WND, Tillis insists that protecting the independence of the Federal Reserve from political interference or legal intimidation is non-negotiable, even as the Trump administration moves to install Kevin Warsh, a respected economist and former Fed governor, as the next chairman.
In a statement Friday, Tillis acknowledged that Warsh is a qualified nominee with a deep understanding of monetary policy, but argued that the Justice Departments pursuit of Powell is fundamentally misguided. He said the DOJ continues to pursue a criminal investigation into Chairman Jerome Powell based on committee testimony that no reasonable person could construe as possessing criminal intent, and reiterated, My position has not changed: I will oppose the confirmation of any Federal Reserve nominee, including for the position of Chairman, until the DOJs inquiry into Chairman Powell is fully and transparently resolved.
Leavitt, speaking Sunday on Fox News Channels Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo, sharply rebuked Tillis stance as reckless and harmful to ordinary Americans. I certainly dont think a United States sitting senator should be holding the entire country and our economy hostage over the fact that he has some political disagreements with an investigation that the Department of Justice is overseeing, she said, underscoring the administrations view that the probe is legitimate and should not be used as leverage.
The DOJ is overseeing a probe into Jerome Powell, a legitimate probe, Leavitt continued, pushing back on the notion that the inquiry is politically tainted. And Jerome Powell is expected to be out of this job in May anyway. So I dont understand Sen. Tillis argument there.
The press secretary praised Warsh as precisely the kind of leader needed at the central bank as the Trump administration seeks to consolidate its economic gains and push for lower interest rates. Leavitt called Warsh a highly qualified and distinguished economist with a very exceptional rsum. And the White House is going to work with the Senate to quickly confirm him because we need a new chairman of the Fed, not just for timing purposes, but also for our economy.
She tied the nomination directly to Trumps economic record and the conservative push for sound money and relief from high borrowing costs. Look, President Trump has brought the core annualized inflation rate down to 1.4%. This is a remarkable turnaround from the record-high 9% inflation we saw under the previous administration. And President Trump has done the work. His policies are working and the interest rats for the American people need to be lowered. Kevin Warsh ultimately will make that decision himself, but its very unfortunate that Sen. Tillis is making such comments.
Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., vice chair of the Joint Economic Committee, told Bartiromo he remains confident Warsh will ultimately be confirmed despite Democratic resistance and Tillis threat. I do, hes extremely qualified, Schmitt said of the Stanford alumnus. I think he has broad support, maybe even have bipartisan support, I dont know, but the Democrats are in full obstruction mode. Look, when these things happen there are always sorts of statements that are made and discussions that are had, but I fully expect that at the end of the day, he will get confirmed.
Schmitt argued that Powells tenure has been marked by political bias and a failure to cut rates in a timely fashion, a criticism long voiced by conservatives who see the Fed as too aligned with establishment thinking. He indicated, I think one of the great tragedies of the Powell era is that this sort of deafness to what should have happened months ago in fact, probably years ago is rate cuts. Hes been overtly political in my view in his job.
The Missouri senator also blasted Powells stance on Trumps tariff policies, which many on the right credit with reshaping global trade in Americas favor. His assessment of tariffs which were wildly wrong along with most of the financial establishment. But now were gonna have somebody in thats very forward thinking, thats very focused on growth. We have record investment in this country, $19 trillion in the first year.
Kevin Hassett, director of the National Economic Council, reinforced that message on The Sunday Briefing with Jacqui Heinrich, portraying Warsh as a data-driven reformer who would resist partisan pressure and help lock in Trumps economic agenda. The bottom line is that Kevin Warsh is the right person at the right time. And hes a very independent, data-driven person. The president believes that if you are data-driven and not partisan he thinks the Fed has been partisan that rates could be a lot lower and I think that Warsh agrees with that and I agree with that.
Not surprisingly, the liberal media establishment has lined up against the presidents approach, with the Washington Posts editorial board sneering that Trump needs to decide what he wants more: Kevin Warsh as chairman or his phony criminal investigation of Jerome H. Powell. That framing dismisses the DOJ probe as illegitimate while ignoring conservatives long-standing concerns about Fed politicization and the damage inflicted by years of easy money followed by delayed rate cuts.
As the confirmation battle looms, the divide on the right over tacticsnot principleshas come into sharp focus, with Tillis invoking institutional independence while the White House and key GOP allies argue that blocking Warsh only prolongs a politicized status quo at the Fed. With Trumps team touting lower inflation, record investment and the need for interest-rate relief, the question now is whether Senate Republicans will close ranks behind a chairman they say is the right person at the right time, or allow internal dissent and Democratic obstruction to stall a central piece of the presidents economic strategy.
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