Trump Fed Chair Pick Says They Disagree About How Hot He Is
Kevin Warsh, the man Donald Trump tapped to run the Federal Reserve, told Congress Tuesday that there’s only one detail that he and the president disagree on.
In the midst of a heated exchange with Senator Elizabeth Warren over his previous pledges to “stand up to Trump,” Warsh failed to name a single line item from the MAGA agenda with which he disagreed.
“Well, senator, the Federal Reserve in recent years has wandered outside of its remit, wandered into other areas,” said Warsh, dodging Warren’s question entirely.
“Just one. Just one little place where you disagree with Donald Trump,” pressed Warren.
“Well, I do have a disagreement, actually, senator, with the president. I think even this morning he said he thought that I was out of central casting. I think central casting—I’d look older, grayer, and maybe show up here with a cigar of sorts,” Warsh smirked.
“Quite adorable, but you know we need a Fed chair who is independent. That’s the only way we preserve the independence of the Federal Reserve,” Warren bit back. “If you can’t answer these questions, you don’t have the courage and you don’t have the independence.”
WARREN: Name one aspect of President Trump's economic agenda with which you disagree
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) April 21, 2026
KEVIN WARSH: He said he thought I'm out of central casting. I think I'd look older, grayer, and maybe show up with a cigar
WARREN: Quite adorable pic.twitter.com/fm4UmMiwGB
Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen similarly questioned Warsh’s chutzpah, citing his monetary policy record on the basis that Warsh’s positions on interest rates “seems to shift with what’s politically convenient, rather than based on sound economic judgment.”
Warsh’s name was a surprise mention late last year when Trump first began floating his replacements for Jerome Powell. Despite railing against Powell’s inflation rates for the better part of his second term, Trump tapped Warsh, another well-known inflation hawk who cut his teeth during the George W. Bush administration and later during the fallout of the Great Recession. But the 56-year-old financier has since changed his tune on the matter and, in doing so, has caught the president’s attention.
Trump has already made his expectations for Warsh crystal clear. Speaking with CNBC earlier Tuesday, Trump said that he would be disappointed if Warsh did not cut interest rates.
Warsh, in turn, made his loyalty clear during his Senate hearing. He refused to acknowledge that Trump lost the 2020 presidential election to Joe Biden, in another apparent attempt to elevate himself to the Trump administration.
Rhode Island Senator Jack Reed ripped Warsh for his transparent affinity for Trump, directly questioning him about Trump’s comments on the business network. Warsh responded that he would maintain independence despite Trump’s pressure campaign to cut rates. Later, in an exchange with Senator John Kennedy, Warsh said that Trump had never asked him to “predetermine, commit, fix, decide on any interest rate decision in any of our discussions.”
“Nor would I ever agree to do so,” Warsh insisted.