The US Senate has approved President Donald Trump’s nominee Stephen Miran to the Federal Reserve’s board of governors, a powerful panel that sets the country’s interest rates.
Miran, who currently serves as chair of the Council of Economic Advisers, becomes the first sitting White House official to join the Fed board since it assumed its present structure in the 1930s. His confirmation, decided on Monday by a close 48-47 vote, has stirred debate over the independence of the central bank.
The economist will immediately join 11 other members of the Federal Open Market Committee, which is scheduled to meet this week. His arrival is expected to influence Trump’s push for a sharp cut in interest rates, a move the president has strongly advocated.
The confirmation was rushed through even as Trump seeks to remove Fed Governor Lisa Cook from the board. The president has accused Cook, the first Black woman to serve in that position, of involvement in mortgage fraud. She has rejected the accusations and has taken legal action to stop her removal.
On Monday, a US appeals court rejected a Justice Department request to overturn an earlier ruling that temporarily blocks Trump from ousting Cook, keeping her in office for now.
