New Federal Reserve head says he'll make decisions independent of Trump

NY Times - Kevin M. Warsh, President Trump’s pick to lead the Federal Reserve, asserted at a confirmation hearing before the Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday that he would not do the president’s bidding on interest rate decisions, pledging to be “strictly independent” if confirmed for one of the world’s most powerful economic positions.

In sometimes testy exchanges, Mr. Warsh, 56, sought to dispel doubts around his credibility, saying Mr. Trump had “never asked me to predetermine, commit, fix, decide on any interest rate decision in any of our discussions, nor would I ever agree to do so.”

Democrats also sought clarity on his roughly $100 million in assets that he has agreed to divest if he is confirmed. Mr. Warsh said that confidentiality agreements had prevented him from providing specific details, and said his investments will be “as plain vanilla as possible” and “sitting in something like cash.”

Mr. Warsh touched on several reforms he would support if confirmed, including changing how the Fed communicates around its policy decisions, and providing fewer hints about the future to avoid officials getting boxed in. He also reiterated his commitment to keep the Fed focused on keeping inflation low and stable and avoiding issues that fall outside its remit.

“The president believes that real economic growth in the U.S. and real take home pay will accelerate,” he said. “I share the president’s confidence in the country and its people. America’s economic growth potential is rising as we sit here today.”