Kevin Hassett, US President Donald Trump’s economic adviser and his favorite to lead the Federal Reserve, said Sunday that the central bank’s mission was to demonstrate independence, but the president’s opinion matters.
As an active adviser to the president, “I talk about almost everything with him almost every day,” Hassett said during an appearance on CBS’s “Face the Nation.”
“I’ve certainly talked about monetary policy,” he said, when asked whether he would frequently consult the president if picked to replace Jerome Powell, whose term as Fed chair ends in May.
“I think he has very strong and well-founded views about what we ought to do. But in the end, the job of the Fed is to be independent,” Hassett said.
And when asked whether the president’s voice would have “equal weighting” with voting members on the Fed’s Board of Governors, Hassett replied: “No, no… he would have no weight.”
“It’s just his opinion matters if it’s good, you know, if it’s based on data,” he added.
On December 2, Trump suggested that Hassett, 63, was his favorite to replace Powell.
Hassett, a PhD economist, chairs the National Economic Council, a White House body that advises the president and his cabinet on policymaking. He often appears on television touting the president’s policies.
During Trump’s first term, Hassett served as chair of the Council of Economic Advisers, another body more dedicated to research and analysis.
On Wednesday, a divided Fed lowered interest rates for a third consecutive time this year, flagging labor market concerns even as inflation remained elevated while tariffs implemented by the second Trump administration bite.
The cut by a quarter percentage point brought rates to a range between 3.50 percent and 3.75 percent, the lowest in around three years.
“I hope Kevin Warsh would also speak to the president if he were Fed chair,” Hassett said during his Sunday appearance on CBS, referring to another likely candidate as he defended Trump’s economic policies.
The presidential pick will have to be approved for the top Fed post by the Senate, which the Republican Party controls.
Trump tried in vain to hasten the departure of Powell, the outgoing chair, by piling on insults and complaints against the man whom he elevated to Fed chair during his first term.
Since then, Trump has said he bitterly regrets that choice, with the Fed keeping interest rates at a level he considers far too high.
Trump declared on Wednesday that it could have “at least doubled” the cut to the key interest rate, which was decided that day.
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Hassett, US Fed chair front-runner, pledges independence from Trump
