Trump says treasury chief Scott Bessent no longer being considered for Fed chair

Trump may soon name pick for open Fed board seat and Fed chair nominee, but Bessent wants to stay in current role

Donald Trump said he would “shortly” announce his pick for an open seat on the Federal Reserve’s board of governors and possibly his nominee for Fed chair as well, but that he had removed the treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, from consideration since Bessent wants to remain in his current job.

In a CNBC interview, Trump called it a “pleasant surprise” that the Fed governor Adriana Kugler had decided to leave her seat now instead of when her term ends in January, a move that appears to have accelerated Trump’s decision on who to appoint to an open seat on the Fed board with possible plans to promote that person to the top policymaking role when the term of the Fed chair, Jerome Powell, ends in May.