Fed Gov. Christopher Waller told Fox News that he thought his most recent conversation with Bessent went well.
“I talked to Scott about 10 days ago. We had a nice, a great, meeting,” Waller told Fox Business in late November.
Waller said that the White House is looking for someone with “experience.” It’s not clear what experience that entails, but of the reported finalists, only three have experience serving on the central bank.
“I think they are looking for someone who has merit, experience, and knows what they are doing in the job, and I think I fit that,” he said.
Just before Thanksgiving, Waller briefly dethroned White House economic advisor Kevin Hassett as the favorite of leading prediction markets. Waller’s lead was short-lived as Hassett quickly supplanted him.
Waller, a longtime regional Fed official, was seen as a convention pick when Trump nominated him to the central bank in 2019. Simultaneously, Trump also nominated Judy Shelton, a former campaign advisor and a Fed critic. The fight over Shelton’s nomination soon spilled over onto Waller’s.
In December 2020, the Senate confirmed Waller 48-47, the narrowest margin for any Fed governor since 1980, per The New York Times.
In July, Waller joined Gov. Michelle Bowman (another Trump first-term pick) in opposing the Fed’s decision not to cut interest rates, the first dual dissent in more than 30 years.
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