Powell’s Path to New Term Gets Trickier on Trading Furor, Warren

Fed trading scandal, Democratic infighting making pick tougher
Issues haven’t dented Powell’s support in White House, for now

Jerome Powell during a House Financial Services Committee hearing in Washington, D.C. on Sept. 30.Photographer: Al Drago/Bloomberg

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By Nancy Cook, Jennifer Jacobs, and Saleha Mohsin

October 7, 2021 at 6:00 AM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

President Joe Biden’s selection of a new Federal Reserve chair grew more complicated in the last week as Congress quarrels over spending, taxes and debt, while a scandal over stock trades by some top officials under Jerome Powell’s leadership could damage his prospects.

What once seemed like an easy potential renomination for Powell -- a favorite of Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, moderate Democrats and Republicans on the Senate Banking Committee -- has morphed into a problem for the White House as Senator Elizabeth Warren, a Massachusetts Democrat, and progressive groups call into question the trading activity.