Stephen Miran, one of President Donald Trump’s top economists, on Tuesday resigned from his leadership role at the White House’s Council of Economic Advisers as his term as a Federal Reserve Governor continues, according to a letter obtained by CNN.
His departure was first reported by Barron’s.
Miran was confirmed by the Senate to serve at the Fed while keeping his role at the White House through an unpaid leave, an unusual arrangement.
In his letter dated Tuesday, Miran wrote that he had promised senators he would leave the White House should he remain at the Fed past January.
As a member of the CEA, “his brilliant insights and powerful advocacy on behalf of the President made him an enormous asset for the White House, and he established himself as a key member of the Trump administration’s economic team,” White House spokesperson Kush Desai said in a statement.
Technically, Miran’s term expired on January 31, as he was serving out the remaining months for a governor who resigned last year.
But Miran’s continued service in that spot marks an opportunity for Trump. The president has nominated Kevin Warsh to become the new Fed chair once Jerome Powell’s term leading the central bank expires in May.
Because of Fed rules, though, only a sitting Fed governor can assume that post as chair – and there are no open governor spots. (Powell’s concurrent term as a Fed governor will last until 2028.)
Instead, Trump can swap in Warsh for Miran closer to Powell’s exit, then elevate Warsh from there.
It’s a complicated series of maneuvers that underscores how Trump has placed the Fed – and its interest-rate policies – under intense scrutiny as the president pushes for lower interest rates.
Over the past year, Trump and his allies have carried out an intense pressure campaign against the Fed, claiming central bankers have been too slow to cut interest rates. The president has frequently insulted Powell and threatened to fire him.
Powell last month revealed that federal prosecutors are investigating testimony he gave to Congress on a renovation to the Fed’s Washington, DC, headquarters. In a video, he said the probe is a “pretext” to further pressure the central bank and erode its political independence.
Meanwhile, Miran has tried to make the case for lower interest rates since joining the board in September. In speeches, he has argued that the US economy is at risk of a recession if Fed officials don’t lower rates fast enough.
He has dissented at four meetings as a Fed governor, in favor of bigger rate cuts. The Fed last year lowered rates three times, each by a quarter point, though Miran broke ranks with the majority to support larger half-point cuts.
By CNN
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