Early Tuesday, Pat Toomey, a ranking member, announced that no Republicans will be attending the meeting. This means that Democrats won’t have the quorum required to hold the votes.
The Senate Banking Committee had to delay Tuesday’s votes on Jerome Powell’s nomination to the Federal Reserve chairman and Lael Brainard vice-chair. The nominations of Sarah Bloom Raskin, Lisa Cook, and Philip Jefferson to the Board of Governors were also expected to be advanced by the committee.
Democrats warned that the boycott could cause harm to American workers due to high inflation and impede the recovery from the pandemic. Republicans missed the meeting because of one nominee: President Biden’s selection of Raskin, the Fed’s top bank regulator and responsible for developing regulatory policies recommendations.
“Ms. Raskin’s persistent and insistent advocacy for the Federal Reserve allocating capital and cutting off credit to disfavored sectors is enough to disqualify her and cause you to vote against. Toomey stated that the question of whether to vote today is an entirely different one.
Toomey also mentioned Republican’s questions about her government connections, and her role within the private sector when she was on the board for the financial tech company Reserve Trust.
“Important questions regarding Ms. Raskin’s use of the ‘revolving door’ remain unanswered largely due to her repeated disingenuousness towards the Committee, starting with her sloppy questionnaire, an evasive conversation, to her refusal of answering questions from Senator Lummis during her nomination hearing, and then her non-answers to written follow-up questions.” The statement went on.
Raskin was subject to a contentious Hearing before Senator Banking Committee earlier in the month. Republicans quizzed her about her position on financial regulators’ roles in combating climate change, as well as her work for Reserve Trust since her time on the Federal Reserve board.
Toomey stated that Republicans aren’t trying to delay her vote, but to have their questions “adequately answered” before proceeding. On Tuesday’s Senate floor, Mitch McConnell, Senate Minority Leader, urged Mr. Biden not to delay her vote but to allow their questions to be “adequately addressed” before moving forward.
Democrats attacked Republicans for blocking the nominations in response to the GOP boycott. Sherrod Brown, Chairman of the Banking Committee, accused GOP members for walking out on American citizens.
My Republican colleagues claim it’s because they haven’t received the information they requested from one the nominees. Brown stated that Ms. Bloom Raskin was the victim of a relentless smear campaign by Republicans and Ranking Members. This has become all too familiar.
He said Raskin had answered all questions and pointed out that the Senate has confirmed her twice before. Raskin served previously on the Fed in 2010-2014 and as Deputy Treasury secretary during President Obama’s second term.
Senator Jon Tester stated, “They’re missing to do their constitutional duty that was elected to do so.” He pointed out that Republicans showed up during the previous administration to vote on nominees he claimed were not qualified.
During the meeting, all 12 Democrats indicated that they would support all the nominees, even though Republicans were absent. Brown rejected the idea of dividing the votes in order to move Biden’s Central Bank picks.
Democrats also attacked Republicans Tuesday, saying that if they were so concerned about inflation and the effect of rising prices on Americans they would show up at the Fed to ensure that the board is fully functional.
Brown spoke out about his Republican colleagues, saying that they are taking away the Federal Reserve to fight inflation.
Consumer prices have increased 7.5% compared to a year ago. The central bank will likely start increasing interest rates next month. The Fed has yet to decide how often or how high it will raise rates.
Three seats remain vacant on the Federal Reserve Board. Powell and Brainard serve in an interim capacity. If Mr. Biden’s nominees get confirmed, it will be the first time in a decade that the Fed has its entire seven-member board.
