President Donald Trump has hinted that he already has a preferred candidate for the chairmanship of the Federal Reserve, but he is in no hurry to announce it – and he also hinted that he might fire the current Fed chair Jerome Powell.
“I do have one, and I still do – that hasn’t changed,” Trump said at a news conference on Monday when asked if he had a favorite candidate. “I’ll announce it at the right time. There’s plenty of time.”
Trump also said that Powell “should resign” and that he “really wanted to fire him”. In July this year, Trump was once close to asking Powell to step down, but gave up due to the negative reaction of the financial market.
“Maybe I would do it again,” Trump told reporters at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.
Trump did not specify who his preferred candidate for chairman was and said he would announce it “at some point in January”.
Kevin Hassett, the director of the National Economic Council, has long been seen as the frontrunner. However, Trump has also expressed interest in Kevin Warsh, a former Federal Reserve governor. Other finalists include current Federal Reserve governors Christopher Waller and Michelle Bowman, as well as Rick Rieder of BlackRock.
Trump has made many ambiguous and sometimes even contradictory remarks about the decision-making process for the new central bank governor. The president said in early December that he had narrowed the list of candidates to one person, but then said he was considering several candidates and lavished praise on several of those on the list.
Trump has long criticized Powell, even though Powell was the Fed chair appointed by him during his first term. The president has indicated that he hopes the next chair will be more proactive in cutting interest rates, as the White House is seeking to lower mortgage costs.
The central bank has cut interest rates at each of its last three meetings, but officials said in December that they might only do so once more in 2026.
Trump said on Monday that he was considering filing a “gross negligence” lawsuit against Powell over a renovation project the Federal Reserve is undertaking. Powell’s term as chair of the Federal Reserve ends in May 2026, but his term as a Fed governor does not end until 2028.
Powell has yet to indicate whether he will step down when his term as Fed chair ends. If he stays on, Trump will not be able to appoint a new Fed governor.
