Trump says Fed chair interviews are done, has pick in mind

Josh Wingrove and Hadriana Lowenkron, Bloomberg News on Jan 22, 2026

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WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said he has finished interviewing candidates to serve as the next Federal Reserve chair and reiterated that he has someone in mind for the job.

“I’ll be telling you soon. I have somebody that I think will be very good but I’m not going to reveal it,” Trump told reporters Thursday.

“It’s someone very respected, very, very well known, and will do, I think, a very good job,” he added.

Trump’s shortlist includes National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett, BlackRock executive Rick Rieder, current Fed Governor Christopher Waller and a former governor, Kevin Warsh.

Hassett was once seen as the front-runner but Trump has since signaled that he may prefer to keep him in his White House role. Trump has privately indicated he is somewhat frustrated by his choices, according to people familiar with the matter.

Trump’s pick to lead the central bank would take over from current chair Jerome Powell, whose term as chair is set to end in May. Trump has been highly critical of Powell, repeatedly lambasting him for being too slow to cut interest rates.

Trump, speaking to CNBC Wednesday in Davos, gave mixed signals on how many candidates remain under consideration. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who is leading the search process, has said there are four contenders on the shortlist and that Trump could announce a pick before the end of the month.

“I’d say we’re down to three, but we’re down to two. And I probably can tell you we’re down to maybe one in my mind,” Trump said Wednesday.

The Trump administration intensified its fight against the current Fed chair earlier this month, issuing subpoenas hinting at a possible criminal probe into the central bank’s renovation of its Washington headquarters. Powell dismissed the probe as an attempt to punish him for not lowering rates faster.

While Powell’s tenure as chair ends in May, he can stay on the Fed board until 2028. The threat of a legal fight has spurred speculation that Powell might choose to stay on even after his term as chair ends.

Trump, asked if he’s worried that Powell will choose to remain at the Fed, said he wasn’t concerned.

“We’ll have to see what happens,” Trump said. “He’s too late, just always too late, despite that we have interest rates going down.”

Trump has also sought to remove Fed Governor Lisa Cook over mortgage fraud allegations that she denies. She has been allowed to stay on the job while the case is litigated. The Supreme Court this week heard oral arguments in that case. Trump, asked about whether the court was skeptical of his power to remove her, said he followed the justices’ questions.

“I didn’t get that impression other than they thought maybe it should have gone through a more normal court system,” Trump said. “But nobody was saying she’s innocent. What they’re saying is maybe it should have been a longer process, but so we’ll see what happens.”

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