There is nothing that Federal Reserve chair nominee Kevin Warsh could say to get Sen. Thom Tillis to end his blockade on Warsh’s confirmation, the North Carolina Republican said Tuesday.
Tillis has vowed not to vote for any Fed nominees, including Warsh, until a criminal investigation into Fed Chair Jerome Powell is resolved. Powell, who denies any wrongdoing, has said he is really being targeted for his refusal to cut interest rates as broadly and as quickly as demanded by President Donald Trump.
“No, no,” Tillis told reporters at the U.S. Capitol, when asked if Warsh could tell him anything at their meeting later in the day to change the senator’s position on blocking a full Senate vote on the nomination.
“This is not about people, it’s about process,” Tillis said. “I think this is a foul.”
After the meeting, Tillis told reporters that he would vote against advancing Warsh’s nomination from the Banking Committee if the Powell probe is not finished by then.
“This is about this is bedrock principle of Fed independence,” the senator said. “The reason why I came out so strong so early is I believe that we, I, have no earthly idea what the market reaction would have been if suddenly the perception is that the Fed chair serves at the pleasure of the President, right?”
Tillis noted that in addition to the pending Powell probe, the Supreme Court has yet to rule whether Trump has the power to fire Fed Governor Lisa Cook.
Trump claims he wanted to fire Cook because of a claim by Bill Pulte, head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, that she committed mortgage fraud. But defenders of Cook, who also denies wrongdoing, say she’s being targeted like Powell because of her opposing Trump’s demands on interest rates.
Tillis on Tuesday called the effort to fire Cook “sophomoric.”
“Whoever came up with that idea should be fired, too,” the senator said.
Tillis on Tuesday said that he is “already impressed” with Warsh’s skills.
“I’ve known of his work for quite some time, and that’s why I’m so frustrated that I’m not going to be able to cast a vote until we dispose of the other issues,” Tillis said.
The senator noted that he and other members of the Senate Banking Committee were witnesses to Powell’s testimony to that panel about the multi-billion-dollar renovation of the Fed’s headquarters in Washington, D.C.
Powell has said that he is under investigation in the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Washington in connection with that project and for his testimony to the Banking Committee.
Tillis on Tuesday said, “We had seven members of the Banking Committee who were witnesses at the alleged scene of the crime who said no crime was committed.”
“Why are we even still having this discussion and holding up a great nominee?” Tillis asked.
“I think it goes back to a young U.S. attorney with a dream, with a bogus basis for an investigation,” he said. “They need to acknowledge that and step away from it so we can get him confirmed.”
Sen. Cynthia Lummis, a Wyoming Republican, praised Warsh after her own meeting with him on Tuesday.
“I had an incredibly productive, thoughtful conversation today with Kevin Warsh,” Lummis said in a statement.
“I have always maintained that America needs a transparent, accountable Fed that embraces financial innovations like digital assets instead of stifling them,” she said. “This is vital for our nation’s financial future, and I look forward to speaking with him further to see how he intends to modernize the Fed and make it accountable to the American people and their representatives in Congress.”
