A presidential pardon of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell would not end Sen. Thom Tillis’ one-man blockade of central bank nominees, the North Carolina Republican said Tuesday.
Only the Justice Department resolving its investigation into Powell’s Senate testimony on a massive Fed renovation project would suffice, he added, doubling down on his intention to use his vote on the Senate Banking Committee as a bulwark against any attempt to dilute the bank’s independence.
Tillis is the main obstacle to the swift confirmation of Kevin Warsh, President Donald Trump’s nominee to replace Powell as Fed chair. He has vowed to oppose any Fed nominee until the Powell investigation ends.
A pardon could be a fast and definitive way for Trump to end any legal peril for Powell, but Tillis called the idea “silly” and a “mistake” because it could imply that Powell is guilty of committing perjury during his appearance last year before the Banking Committee.
“A pardon to me almost validates the whole notion for the investigation,” Tillis said. “If they think they’ve got a valid case, then we’ll just see it through to the end.”
With Republicans holding a 13-11 majority on the Banking panel, Tillis’ opposition is enough to prevent Warsh from getting advanced out of committee unless he gets support from Democrats on the panel.
Tillis said Tuesday that he thought Warsh would be a “fine” Fed chair “at some point in the future if not this Congress, then the next Congress, if they don’t get this investigation done.”
“I’m not budging one inch,” he added. “This is foundational to Fed independence and if you reward this sort of behavior and there’s no compelling evidence that could convince me or a jury that he’s guilty of it then you’ve got to stand on Fed independence.”
Trump batted down a question Monday about whether he would ask prosecutors to drop the Powell case in order to clear a path for Warsh. He instead told reporters that Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. attorney for D.C., would “take it to the end and see.”
Responding to Trump’s remarks, Tillis said it showed “an area where we’re in agreement this week — we’re both willing to go all the way.”
