Shelton’s nomination to the Fed is blocked
Trump favorite likely to get a second vote
Judy Shelton’s nomination to the Federal Reserve Board was blocked Tuesday in the Senate, a stunning defeat for Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and a blow to President Donald Trump’s drive to reshape the U.S. central bank before he leaves office.
After COVID-19 exposure forced two Republican senators into quarantine, the GOP was left short of the votes needed to overcome united Democratic opposition. Once the outcome was clear, McConnell switched his vote to no, a tactical move that would allow him to bring the nomination
up for reconsideration, which could happen as soon as this week.
Republican Sens. Mitt Romney and Susan Collins joined with 47 Democrats and two independents in a 50-47 vote against advancing Shelton’s nomination. Vice President-elect Kamala Harris traveled from Delaware, where she was working with the Biden transition team, to Washington to cast her vote.
McConnell’s plans to confirm Shelton were blown up Tuesday morning when Iowa Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley announced he would be in quarantine after exposure to someone who tested positive for COVID-19. GOP Sen. Rick Scott of Florida also is in quarantine. Both were expected to back Shelton; so the timing of their return could determine whether McConnell will bring her nomination back up.
Another GOP senator, Pat Roberts of Kansas, said he was undecided on Shelton just hours before the vote got under way. As the roll was being called, hewas vigorously lobbied by GOP colleagues on the Senate floor. Roberts ultimately voted with his party to close off debate to move toward the confirmation vote.
Although McConnell preserved the ability to bring the nomination before the Senate for reconsideration, the calendar is tight and the vote count doesn’t get easier for Republicans.
Next week’s session will be shortened by the Thanksgiving holiday, and it’s not clear when Grassley and Scott will come out of quarantine. Republicanswould have to muster another vote before Arizona Democrat Mark Kelly replaces Republican Martha McSally by early next month after he defeated her in a special Senate election. That would leave the GOP short of votes for confirmation.
John Thune, the second-ranking Republican senator, said Kelly’s swearing-in will be “a complicating factor here.” After the vote, Thune said “in all likelihood” Senate Republicans will try to vote on Shelton’s nomination again this week.
White House spokesman Judd Deere said the administration continues to support Shelton and remains confident she “will be confirmed upon reconsideration.”
Shelton, 66, a former informal adviser to Trump, was long known for her advocacy of a return to the gold standard, ultrahawkish views on inflation and opposition to federal deposit insurance. She provoked further controversy and opposition by abandoning those views and calling for interest-rate cuts to align herself with Trump as she emerged as a candidate for a Fed post.
She has also questioned the relevance of the Fed’s mandate, set by Congress, to pursue maximum employment and price stability.
Former Fed officials and a group of prominent economists, including seven Nobel Prize winners, signed letters this year urging senators to reject Shelton’s nomination.