President Donald Trump achieved a significant victory on Tuesday as the Senate confirmed Kevin Warsh to the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, positioning the former central banker to potentially become the public face of the Fed.
The Senate voted 51-45 to confirm Warsh to a 14-year term on the Federal Reserve’s seven-member board.
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(Update on Save America Act vote)
This appointment places one of Trump’s preferred economic advisors in a key position ahead of a separate vote later this week on whether he will officially succeed outgoing Fed Chair Jerome Powell, whom Trump appointed in 2018.
The confirmation marks a significant shift in Trump’s ongoing conflict with Powell regarding interest rates and monetary policy.
(Trump pushes new 2028 Republican — not JD Vance)
Trump has consistently criticized Powell for not aggressively lowering rates, even going so far as to label him a “moron” and a “stubborn mule” while the White House advocated for looser monetary policies to encourage economic growth.
This vote also increases scrutiny over the future direction of the Federal Reserve as Trump seeks to reshape the central bank with allies who align more closely with his economic agenda.
Warsh, 55, is well-acquainted with the Fed. A graduate of Stanford University and Harvard Law School, he previously served as a Fed governor from 2006 to 2011, including during the peak of the global financial crisis.
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Since leaving the central bank, he has worked at Stanford’s Hoover Institution and has advised billionaire investor Stanley Druckenmiller.
Allies of the president have increasingly coalesced around Kevin Warsh as a stable but reform-oriented choice to lead the Federal Reserve after Powell’s term as chair expires Friday.
Warsh will assume the board seat previously held by Stephen Miran, a Trump adviser who joined the Fed last fall after an early resignation created an opening.
Miran’s official term ended in January, though he remained on the board pending confirmation of his successor.
Miran became known for consistently advocating lower interest rates during his time on the Federal Open Market Committee.
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He dissented from every rate decision this year after the committee opted to keep rates unchanged, arguing instead for cuts.
During the Fed’s final meetings of 2025, Miran also pushed for deeper reductions.
Warsh has likewise been critical of the Federal Reserve in recent years, taking aim at the size of the central bank’s balance sheet, its communications strategy, and its regulatory policies.
Though once regarded as more hawkish on inflation, Warsh has recently indicated he could support interest rate cuts under certain economic conditions.
But that said, he also told senators during his confirmation hearing that he wouldn’t be acting as a political operative for the president, sticking only to Trump’s economic demands, adding that he’s never been asked to do that in the first place.
“He never asked me to predetermine, fix or decide on any interest rate decision, nor would I ever do so,” Warsh told senators last month. “I will be an independent actor if confirmed as chair of the Federal Reserve,” he added.
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The confirmation battle took place amid increasing controversy surrounding Powell, who has been under mounting pressure and uncertainty due to a criminal investigation that has cast a shadow over the final months of his tenure.
Warsh’s term on the board will last until 2040, potentially granting Trump’s Federal Reserve nominee significant influence over U.S. monetary policy for many years.
Meanwhile, Trump expressed his continued interest in inspecting Fort Knox to personally verify the presence of the nation’s gold reserves, which are valued at nearly $700 billion.
This comes in light of concerns raised last year regarding the security of the highly protected bullion depository.
“We wanted to go and knock on the door of Fort Knox — a very thick door — and to see whether or not we have any gold in there,” Trump told “Full Measure with Sharyl Attkisson” in a wide-ranging interview that was aired on Sunday.
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