Jerome Powell Set to End Last Fed Meeting as Chair Wednesday
Jerome Powell is likely to conclude his last Federal Reserve meeting as chair on Wednesday, closing a tenure that began in 2018 and was extended by Joe Biden. The handoff comes after the Fed pushed rates higher to fight inflation that peaked at its highest level in more than four decades.
For businesses, borrowers and investors, the immediate question is whether the next chair will keep the same line on rates and independence that defined Powell’s term. Price increases have moderated, but the economy has done so with growth slowing and no recession so far.
Powell’s 2018 to Wednesday span
2018 was the starting point for Powell’s Fed chairmanship, and the Wednesday meeting marks the likely end of that run. He was appointed by Donald Trump in his first term and later reappointed by Biden, giving him a rare stretch across two administrations with sharply different economic and political pressures.
More than four decades was the inflation peak Powell confronted in the wake of Covid-19, when the central bank responded with aggressive rate hikes. That move helped bring price increases down, but it also left the Fed balancing slower growth against the risk of doing too little too soon.
Trump pressure and Lisa Cook
Pressure from Donald Trump over lower interest rates became one of the defining political tests of Powell’s tenure. Trump also attempted to fire Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, adding another layer to the fight over who gets to shape the central bank’s policy line.
Last week, the Justice Department dropped its probe into Powell and the Federal Reserve, removing one legal cloud from the final days of his chairmanship. Sen. Thom Tillis had held up his pivotal vote for Kevin Warsh’s nomination over the investigation, tying the personnel fight directly to the legal one.
Kevin Warsh and Powell’s legacy
Kevin Warsh is likely to be confirmed by the Senate as Powell’s replacement, which would turn Wednesday’s meeting into a clear transition point rather than just another policy decision. Sarah Binder, a political science professor at George Washington University and senior fellow at Brookings, said Powell will be remembered for defending the Fed’s autonomy.
"I think what Powell helps demonstrate is that this is not just the job of the Fed chair, that the Fed needs defenders in order to protect its autonomy" — Sarah Binder. "Powell just wasn’t the recipient of this outreach by these defenders. He cultivated it." That leaves his final meeting with a sharper edge than a routine rate decision: the next chair inherits not just the interest-rate toolkit, but the expectation that the Fed will keep its distance from White House pressure.
