Trump Fed pick Stephen Miran clears Senate panel in party-line vote

President Trump’s nominee to join the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors, Stephen Miran, was approved by the Senate Banking Committee Wednesday, moving him closer to confirmation ahead of next week’s central bank meeting.

The panel voted 13-11 along party lines to advance Miran’s nomination to the full Senate.

Trump tapped Miran, the head of the Council of Economic Advisers (CEA), to replace Adriana Kugler, a Biden appointee who abruptly stepped down last month.

Should Miran be confirmed by the full Senate, Miran will serve until the scheduled end of Kugler’s term Jan. 31.

Miran intends to take an unpaid leave of absence from the CEA while serving on the Fed, drawing the ire of Democrats who want him to resign the former post.

Critics charge the appointment of Miran is counter to longstanding efforts to keep the Fed independent of politics while supervising US monetary policy.

Trump said that Miran would hold the vacant Fed governor position while continuing ” to search for a permanent replacement.”

The president has waged a months-long pressure campaign for the Fed to lower its benchmark interest rate target, a move that would likely jolt the economy but could risk stoking inflation.

“Just out: No Inflation!!! ‘Too Late’ must lower the RATE, BIG, right now,” Trump demanded in a Truth Social post Wednesday, referring to Fed Chair Jerome Powell.

Trump has publicly clashed with Powell for months as the administration grapples with the need to refinance some $9 trillion of US debt. The president has also argued that inflation is under control, so there is no reason to keep interest rates elevated.

Technically, the Federal Open Market Committee, not Powell, is in charge of setting interest rates. But Powell has defended the panel’s apprehension about lowering rates, pointing to uncertainty over the impact of Trump’s tariff policy.

In addition to Powell, Trump has also gone after Fed governor Lisa Cook, another Biden appointee, attempting to fire her last month. On Tuesday, a judge temporary blocked Cook’s dismissal while litigation plays out.

The president claims he fired Cook over accusations of mortgage fraud that had been dug up by Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte.

The Fed’s next scheduled policy meeting is Sept. 16-17, and the central bank is expected to revisit interest rates amid signs of a softening job market.