Trump nominates Powell critic for vacant Fed seat

Stephen Miran, chair of President Donald Trump's Council of Economic Advisers

Stephen Miran will fill a seat left vacant by the resignation of board member Adriana Kugler

(Image credit: AP Photo / Alex Brandon)

What happened

President Donald Trump said Thursday he will nominate Stephen Miran, the chair of his Council of Economic Advisers, to fill the seat on the Federal Reserve Board of Governors left vacant by last week's unexpected resignation of board member Adriana Kugler.

Who said what

If confirmed, Miran would "add a near-certain vote in support of lower interest rates," joining Trump's first-term Fed picks Christopher Waller and Michelle Bowman, The Associated Press said. But "even with Miran on the board," many of the other 12 Fed officials who vote on rate policy "remain concerned that Trump's sweeping tariffs could push inflation higher in the coming months."

Miran last year argued against the Fed's rate cuts, saying the board was not worried enough about inflation. But since joining Trump's White House, he has argued that "inflation isn't likely to be a problem" under Trump's policies, The Wall Street Journal said. In a paper he co-wrote last year, Miran also advised "shortening board member terms and clarifying that members serve at the will of the U.S. president, as well as imposing bans on the revolving door between the executive branch and the Fed."

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What next?

Kugler's resignation took effect today, but it "isn't clear how soon Miran could go through the Senate confirmation process," the Journal said. Congress is "on recess until September," and the next Fed policy meeting is Sept. 16-17.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.