Hopefuls eyeing Powell’s job intensify push amid Trump rift

As relations between President Donald Trump and Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell deteriorate, potential successors are ramping up their efforts to secure the nomination.

Former Fed Governor Kevin Warsh, who is on Trump’s shortlist to succeed Powell, has long called for a regime change at the Federal Reserve.

TRUMP’S POTENTIAL SHORTLIST FOR THE FED CHAIR IS TAKING SHAPE

“This isn’t the first time in the last decade that you’ve heard me say that we need a regime change at the Fed. It’s not just about a person, it’s about an approach to economics and an approach to what they’re doing,” Warsh said during a CNBC interview on Thursday.

“This isn’t about one person and this isn’t about getting a job,” he said, adding that the “broad conduct of monetary policy has been broken for quite a long time.”

“The central bank that sits there today is radically different from the central bank I joined in 2006,” Warsh said.

Warsh was among Trump’s leading candidates to replace Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen in 2018. Trump ultimately appointed Powell to the role.

More recently, he was considered a contender for Treasury secretary in the second Trump administration before the president landed on former hedge fund chief Scott Bessent.

“I think he’s doing a great job, and he is serving the president well,” Warsh said of Bessent, adding that the next Fed chair should “work together seamlessly” with Treasury.

TRUMP URGES RATE CUTS TO BOOST SAVINGS, BUT FED SAYS ECONOMY IS STRONG

The former Morgan Stanley banker said the Federal Reserve is to blame for the majority of the issues Trump has raised.

“I think the Fed has done a very good job of blaming others for their mistakes. It’s been very popular to blame the president because he is being so mean to them. Most of the Feds’ mistakes are because of choices they’ve made,” Warsh said.

Trump told reporters at the White House on Wednesday that Powell was doing a “lousy job” and that he has had calls with “so many people that want that job.”

The president said he most likely would not fire Powell before the Fed chair’s term ends in May 2026 but added that he would not “rule out anything.” He added that he discussed the potential of firing him during a meeting with House Republicans. 

TRUMP ASKS HOUSE REPUBLICANS IF HE SHOULD FIRE POWELL

Kevin Hassett, Trump’s top economic adviser, is also in the running for the Fed chair job.

Hassett has been a loyal defender of Trump’s economic agenda and currently serves as the director of the White House’s National Economic Council. Hassett held two roles during the first Trump administration and advised Trump on economic policy during the 2024 presidential campaign.

Trump told reporters at the White House on Wednesday that he thought Hassett “was fantastic” when asked about Powell’s successors.

Earlier in the week, Bessent said the administration had begun a “formal process” to name Powell’s successor.

“There are a lot of great candidates, and we’ll see how rapidly it progresses,” Bessent said in an interview with Bloomberg Surveillance. When asked about the timeline for announcing a new Fed chair, Bessent said it is “President Donald Trump’s decision, and it will move at his speed.”