The U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs published Ranking Member Elizabeth Warren’s opening statement from the nomination hearing for Kevin Warsh, President Trump’s nominee to serve as Chair of the Federal Reserve. Warren argued the hearing should not proceed and urged the Committee to focus instead on oversight of what she described as political efforts to pressure or control the central bank. In her remarks, Warren linked her objections to broader economic and geopolitical conditions and warned that undermining Federal Reserve independence could enable misuse of the Fed’s authorities. She also criticised Warsh’s record as a Federal Reserve governor from 2006 to 2011, including his views and actions before, during and after the 2008 financial crisis, and highlighted what she characterised as inconsistent positions on interest rates over time. Warren noted that Democratic members of the Committee had previously asked the Chair to postpone the hearing to conduct oversight related to alleged probes involving Chair Jerome Powell and Governor Lisa Cook.
U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs 2026-04-21
U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs hears Senator Warren call to delay Kevin Warsh Federal Reserve Chair nomination hearing
The U.S. Senate Banking Committee published Ranking Member Elizabeth Warren’s opening statement opposing Kevin Warsh’s nomination as Federal Reserve Chair and instead calling for oversight of perceived political efforts to pressure the central bank. Warren warned that weakening Fed independence could enable misuse of its authorities, criticised Warsh’s record as a former governor, and noted prior Democratic requests to postpone the hearing pending oversight of alleged probes involving Chair Jerome Powell and Governor Lisa Cook.