Charlie NashMay 11th, 2026, 10:32 am

President Donald Trump’s Director of the National Economic Council, Kevin Hassett, accused Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome “Jay” Powell of “creating political conflicts” during an appearance on CNBC, Monday.

“I’m really thrilled that my friend Kevin Warsh is about to be confirmed,” said Hassett during an appearance on Squawk Box. “I think there’s an underappreciated reason why markets are doing so well – that there’s going to be a change of leadership at the Fed, that leadership is going to be more level-headed, less prone to creating political conflicts that are, you know, different from the charge of the fed.”

He continued, “So I think in the end, Kevin will talk to Jay and see what it takes, but again, where we are is that the inspector general of the fed is investigating the building situation, and so it’s not like the White House is disrespecting the independence of the fed, it’s the fed itself that’s looking into it, and I would guess that the off-ramp for Jay would be if the inspector general’s report comes out soon and he’s happy with the results, then I would expect that he would leave.”

President Trump nominated Warsh to replace Powell, who was recently the subject of a federal investigation over the renovation of the Federal Reserve’s headquarters and his statements to Congress.

The Department of Justice dropped its investigation into Powell last month, with U.S. Attorney for Washington, D.C. Jeanine Pirro warning that she would “not hesitate to restart a criminal investigation should the facts warrant doing so.”

Watch above via CNBC.

New: The Mediaite One-Sheet "Newsletter of Newsletters"
Your daily summary and analysis of what the many, many media newsletters are saying and reporting. Subscribe now!