Tillis likes Warsh – but still plans to block his confirmationpublished at 16:25 BST
16:25 BST
Anthony Zurcher
North America correspondent
Republican Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina has been a key roadblock to Kevin Warsh’s confirmation as Federal Reserve chairman. During remarks at today’s hearing, he made clear that he thinks Warsh would be a good pick for the job. His objection has been to the ongoing federal criminal investigation into the Fed’s multi-billion-dollar renovation project at its Washington DC headquarters.
Donald Trump has repeatedly suggested that the project, which has been beset by cost overruns, was mismanaged and potentially fraudulent – and has laid the blame at the feet of Jerome Powell, the current Fed chair. Early today, the president said “it’s possible” that Powell was personally profiting from the renovations and declined to commit to ending the investigation.
Tillis took nearly the entirety of his five minutes during the hearing to debunk the president’s allegations. He said the cost overruns while “unfortunate” were “legitimate”, noting the structural issues with the existing building and the rising cost of construction materials.
He added that a federal prosecutor “thought it would be cute” to investigate Powell, but that the criminal inquiry should stop immediately. Only then, he said, would he join with Republicans in the narrowly divided Senate to back Warsh’s confirmation.