President Donald Trump announced early Friday that he is nominating former Federal Reserve board member Kevin Warsh to serve as the next chairman of the Federal Reserve, a move that signals the president’s intent to fundamentally reshape the nation’s central bank.
“I am pleased to announce that I am nominating Kevin Warsh to be the CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD OF GOVERNORS OF THE FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. The president praised Warsh in glowing terms, saying he has known him for a long time and predicting he will go down as one of the greatest Fed chairmen in history. Trump added that Warsh is “central casting” and someone who “will never let you down.”
Trump also moved to shut down speculation that National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett was in line for the job. In a separate post, the president said Hassett would have been “great,” but emphasized that he is currently doing an outstanding job at the White House and that Trump did not want to lose him.
Warsh has long been viewed as a top contender for the role. A former Morgan Stanley banker and economic adviser to President George W. Bush, Warsh served on the Federal Reserve Board from 2006 to 2011. He became the youngest governor in the Fed’s history and acted as the central bank’s key liaison to Wall Street during the 2007–2008 financial crisis.
A familiar name in Republican economic circles, Warsh was a finalist for Trump’s first Fed chair nomination in 2017 but ultimately lost out to Jerome Powell. If confirmed, Warsh would replace Powell, whose term ends in May.
The nomination, however, is expected to face stiff resistance on Capitol Hill. Republican Sens. Thom Tillis of North Carolina and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska have vowed to oppose any Fed chair nominee put forward by Trump while the Justice Department is conducting a criminal probe into the central bank and Powell. Tillis also sits on the Senate Banking Committee, giving him leverage to slow or block Fed nominations before they ever reach the full Senate.
Democratic support for Warsh is also expected to be minimal. Democrats are already furious over Trump’s attempt to remove Fed board member Lisa Cook, whose legal challenge to the president’s action was argued before the Supreme Court last week. A ruling against Cook could dramatically expand presidential power over the Fed by allowing Trump to fire board members and replace them with nominees aligned with his views.
Trump has made no secret of his belief that the Fed should work more closely with the White House, including on interest rate decisions. Critics argue that such an arrangement would undermine the Fed’s long-standing independence, but Trump has repeatedly dismissed that concern.
Warsh appears well-suited to Trump’s vision. He has accused the Fed under Powell of hiding behind claims of independence to avoid accountability, and has said central bankers should “grow up” and be tougher in the face of criticism. He also has close political ties to Trump. His father-in-law, Ronald Lauder, has donated millions to Trump and Republican causes and has been linked to the president’s interest in purchasing Greenland.
Trump has frequently called his decision to appoint Powell one of the biggest mistakes of his first term. He has accused Powell of mismanaging inflation, manipulating interest rates for political reasons, and lacking the resolve to lead the Fed. Those tensions date back to 2018 and intensified during the U.S.-China trade war, when Powell refused Trump’s calls for aggressive rate cuts.
While Trump briefly eased off Powell during the COVID-19 economic collapse in 2020, his frustration has returned since reclaiming the White House. Powell has insisted he will serve out his term and says the Fed’s decisions have been guided solely by its mandate of maximum employment and stable inflation.
With Warsh’s nomination, Trump is making clear that a new chapter at the Fed is coming — one that could redefine the balance of power between the White House and the central bank.