President Joe Biden is expected to nominate Sarah Bloom Raskin as the Fed’s vice chairwoman for supervision, one of the highest roles in the nation’s central bank.
Once nominated, Raskin will have to pass with approval in the Senate by a simple majority. Democrats control the vote in the 50-50 chamber as Vice President Kamala Harris holds the tie-breaking vote.
President Joe Biden has picked three nominees for open slots on the Federal Reserve board, including progressive favorite Sarah Bloom Raskin https://t.co/xaEPZr5FZE
— POLITICO (@politico) January 14, 2022
“The vice chairwoman for supervision seat has been vacant since the October departure of Randal Quarles, according to the Washington Examiner.
Raskin’s Background
“President Biden has nominated a serious, qualified, nonpartisan group of five nominees for the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve who together will bring an extraordinary amount of skill, experience, and competence to the Federal Reserve,”a source told Politico.
“Sen. Patrick Toomey (R., Pa.) cited Ms. Raskin’s article as troubling during a confirmation hearing Thursday for Ms. Brainard. Ms. Raskin ‘explicitly advocated that the Fed allocate capital by denying it to this disfavored sector,’ Mr. Toomey said, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Toomey and other Republicans may oppose Raskin over her climate change views, but will unlikely not be enough to oppose her nomination.
Other Nominees
“Mr. Biden also plans to nominate two economists for other Fed board seats: Lisa Cook, a professor of economics and international relations at Michigan State University; and Philip Jefferson, a professor and administrator at Davidson College in North Carolina,” the Wall Street Journal added.
Cook and Jefferson, who are both black, would be among the top people of color at the Fed. The move would help meet Biden’s goal to include greater diversity within top federal agencies.
Cook served as a senior economist at the White House Council of Economic Advisers during the Obama administration.
Jefferson is former Fed economist who serves as a professor and administrator at Davidson College in North Carolina.
The new nominees offer Biden more influence at the Fed at a concerning time as inflation has hit a nearly 40-year high in the nation.