Won’t back Powell for 2nd Fed term, Warren announces

Powell’s term is up in February, and the White House has not signaled whether it will reappoint him to a second term as chairman.

WASHINGTON — Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., on Tuesday said she would oppose giving Jerome H. Powell a second term as chairman of the Federal Reserve, raising the political stakes around a major nomination decision for the Biden administration.

At a Tuesday hearing of the Senate Banking Committee, Warren pointed to Powell’s record on banking regulation and steps taken by the central bank to ease rules on the banking system put in place after the recession of 2008.

“Your record gives me grave concern,” Warren said. “And that makes you a dangerous man to head up the Fed, and it’s why I will oppose your renomination.”

Powell’s term is up in February, and the White House has not signaled whether it will reappoint him to a second term as chairman. The Biden administration can fill up to four openings at the Fed in the coming months, and there’s growing expectation that the White House will unveil a package of nominations at the same time.

Powell has garnered support from Republicans and Democrats, especially for his leadership of the Fed during the covid crisis. He has been the most public face of the Fed’s sprawling policy response to bolster the financial system and encourage Congress to keep up its economic supports.

But he has come under fire from progressive groups and some members of Congress, including Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.; Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich.; and Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., for weakening rules on the banking system and not doing enough to combat climate risk.

Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, is considered by many Fed watchers to be another possible Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee to push back on Powell’s nomination, though he has not shared his position publicly. So far, Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., has come out in support of Powell’s renomination, along with Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I.