Treasury Secretary Scott Bescent said Monday that the White House will begin interviewing candidates this fall, replacing Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, whose term ends in May 2026.
Bessent spoke to Bloomberg TV during his visit to Argentina, and said it would give the Trump administration about six months’ lead time before Powell resigned. He gave no further details.
President Trump has repeatedly pressed the Fed to lower interest rates, saying on April 4th, “Cutting interest rates, Jerome, stop politics!”
Bescent said he is not worried about Trump getting rid of Powell or challenging the Fed’s independence. However, he said there is room for further debate about the Fed’s role as a bank regulator.
“We have repeatedly said that the Fed has two obligations and believe that monetary policy is a jewellery box that must be preserved. And they have a regulatory policy. And I think we can have more discussions as the Fed is one of three bank regulators.
Bescent said he had breakfast with Powell every week and discussed a wide range of things. When asked if they discussed contingency plans with Powell if financial stability burned up, Bescent said, “Specifically, did you break some kind of glass? I think we’ve come a long way from that.”
He said last week he saw Powell during his visit to the Federal Reserve, but has not heard any particular concerns about recent developments in the bond market. “It seems like business as usual,” he added.
