Trump Weighs Warsh And Hassett In Fed Chair Race As He Pushes For Aggressive Rate Cuts: Report

• Trump said Warsh is currently his top choice, while Hassett remains firmly in contention.
• The President called for rates near 1% and said the Fed chair should consult with the White House.
• The remarks followed the Fed’s third rate cut of the year, which drew rare internal dissent.

U.S. President Donald Trump reportedly said he is weighing Kevin Warsh and Kevin Hassett as leading candidates to head the Federal Reserve next year, signalling that the race remains open despite recent speculation that a decision had already been made.

Speaking in an interview with The Wall Street Journal at the White House, Trump said former Fed governor Kevin Warsh was at the top of his list, while also praising National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett. “You have Kevin and Kevin,” Trump said, adding that both were strong options, alongside a few other contenders.

Final Interviews Narrow Fed Chair Shortlist

Hassett has widely been seen as the front-runner after Trump hinted in recent weeks that he had settled on a choice, but Trump’s comments indicated Warsh remains firmly in contention.

The President also voiced frustration over his earlier choice of current Fed chair Jerome Powell in 2017, saying he relied on advice at the time that he now regrets.

A final round of interviews is under way. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has spoken with Hassett and has also interviewed Fed governors Christopher Waller and Michelle Bowman, both appointed during Trump’s first term, as the shortlist is narrowed.

Focus On Interest Rates

Trump reportedly held a roughly 45-minute meeting with Warsh, during which he pressed him on whether he would support interest-rate cuts if chosen to lead the central bank. Trump said Warsh favours lowering rates, adding that most advisers he has spoken to share that view.

The president also said he believes the next Fed chair should consult with him on rate decisions, arguing that such coordination was more common in the past. He said he would like interest rates to be around 1% or lower, and within a year, citing the need to reduce the cost of financing roughly $30 trillion in U.S. government debt, the report said. 

Recent Fed Decisions

Trump’s remarks followed a fresh rate cut by the Federal Reserve on Wednesday, when policymakers lowered borrowing costs by a quarter point to a range of 3.5% to 3.75%, marking the third cut of the year. The decision was unusually divided, with three officials voting against it, marking the most dissents the Fed has seen since 2019.

Fed officials said the move reflected a cooling job market alongside inflation that remains higher than desired. They struck a cautious tone about what comes next, signaling only one more rate cut in 2026 and outlining plans to begin buying Treasury bills later this month to keep the financial system well supplied with liquidity.

Candidate Backgrounds

Hassett has worked with Trump longer than any other contender. He served as a senior economic adviser from 2017 to 2019, returned briefly during the Covid-19 pandemic, and became head of the National Economic Council earlier this year. He has played down speculation that he is the favourite, noting that Trump often changes his mind.

Warsh, a former Wall Street executive and adviser to George W. Bush’s administration, served as a Fed governor from 2006 to 2011. Trump interviewed Warsh for the Fed chair role in 2017 but ultimately chose Powell.

How Did Stocktwits Users React?

On Stocktwits, retail sentiment was ‘bullish’ for both the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) and the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF (DIA), with message volume described as ‘normal’ for SPY and ‘high’ for DIA. By contrast, sentiment for the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) was ‘bearish’ amid ‘normal’ message volume.

So far this year, SPY is up 17%, DIA is up 16%, and QQQ is up 20%

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