President Donald Trump is leaning toward appointing both Standford University economist John Taylor and former investment Jerome “Jay” Powell to top positions at the Federal Reserve, according to people familiar with the president’s thinking.
The president has two top positions to fill at the Fed; the Fed chairmanship currently held by Janet Yellen and a vice-chairmanship held by Stanley Fischer. The president has not yet decided which of the two front-runners will get which job, the sources said.
Trump recently met with Yellen to discuss the possibility of re-nominating her as chair. The following day, Yellen had lunch with White House economic adviser Gary Cohn, formerly a front-runner for the chair himself but now largely considered out of the running.
Trump was critical of Yellen during the campaign but has recently praised her work at the Federal Reserve. This praise has led people close to the president to expect that the president will name Powell as chair because Powell has been a supporter of Yellen’s cautious approach to raising rates. Trump has said he favors low interest rates and lower rates are considered by most economists to be supportive of faster economic growth, a major goal of the Trump administration.
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