Susan Collins becomes 2nd GOP senator to oppose Trump's Fed nominee Judy Shelton

There are now two Republican senators who have said they oppose the nomination of Judy Shelton to the Federal Reserve's board of governors.

Shelton is President Trump's former economic adviser, and the Senate Banking Committee voted along party lines last week to approve her candidacy. She is a controversial choice, as Shelton has questioned the need for a central bank and is a proponent of a return to the gold standard.

Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) said last week he won't vote to approve Shelton, and Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) released a statement Monday saying that Shelton has "openly called for the Federal Reserve to be less independent of the political branches" which is "not the right signal to send, particularly in the midst of the pandemic, and for that reason, I intend to vote against her nomination if it reaches the floor."

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Assuming all Democrats vote against her in the Senate, Shelton can only afford to lose three Republican senators and still get confirmed. A White House official and Senate aides told The Wall Street Journal they hope to hold a vote on her nomination by next week.