"Even Treasury Secretary Bessent Tried to Stop the Powell Investigation"... Confirmation of Next Fed Chair Also Uncertain

[Financial News]  
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The Trump administration itself is said to be concerned about the DOJ investigation into Jerome Hayden Powell, chair of the Federal Reserve System (Fed), The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on the 13th (local time).
Scott Bessent, the Treasury Secretary who oversees U.S. economic and financial market policy on behalf of President Donald Trump, is even reported to have called Trump to urge him not to proceed with the investigation into Powell.
With Republican Party (GOP) senators also pushing back against the Powell probe, concerns are emerging that Trump’s nominee for the next Fed chair may fail to win confirmation in the United States Senate.
WSJ reported that some officials within the Trump administration fear the DOJ’s investigation of Powell could block Senate confirmation of the next Fed chair nominee and roil financial markets.
Citing sources, WSJ said that on the night of the 11th Bessent phoned Trump and urged him to call off the Powell investigation, warning it could create multiple problems for the administration.
According to the sources, Bessent is worried that the probe into Powell could shock financial markets and make it difficult for any future Fed chair nominee to clear the Senate confirmation hurdle, regardless of who is chosen.
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Bessent’s concerns are becoming reality.
On the night of the 11th, when news of the Powell investigation became public, Thom Tillis, a Republican senator from North Carolina, declared that he would oppose confirmation of any candidate Trump nominates as the next Fed chair. He made clear he would maintain this stance until the issue is fully resolved, effectively neutralizing the president’s power to appoint the Fed chair.
Tillis sits on the United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, which handles Fed chair confirmations, and given the committee’s evenly balanced partisan makeup, he has the power to block the process altogether. If he joins forces with Democratic senators to stop the nomination in the committee, a confirmation vote in the full Senate session would not even take place.
Even if the nomination were to reach the full Senate session, the situation would not change much. For Tillis and Democratic senators to block confirmation of a Fed chair nominee, they would only need to peel off a few Republican colleagues.
The current Senate lineup is 53 Republicans to 47 Democrats, leaving only a narrow margin.
Some Republican senators are already showing signs of breaking ranks.
Several GOP senators, including John Thune, the Republican Senate leader from South Dakota, expressed concern on the 12th about the DOJ investigation. Thune said he hopes the matter will be resolved quickly.
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Within the Trump administration, there are worries that the investigation could jolt financial markets. Officials fear that market turbulence could push up interest rates.
John Neely Kennedy, a Republican senator from Louisiana who also serves on the Senate Banking Committee, criticized the probe, saying it “will raise interest rates if anything, not lower them,” and arguing that at a time when the government should be focused on economic recovery, the administration is stirring up turmoil and driving rates higher.
According to administration sources, some aides inside The White House are also concerned about the market impact of the investigation. One source said even The White House was not informed of the probe in advance.
One Trump adviser said that the stock market’s early weakness on the 12th was a sign that the investigation into the Fed chair had “completely ruined” the situation.
The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) opened weaker on the 12th but later rebounded, extending its record-setting rally for a second straight session. However, on the 13th it turned lower again.
Meanwhile, some Republican lawmakers are reportedly planning to propose a political deal to Trump’s side under which the investigation would be dropped if Powell resigns from the chairmanship.
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dympna@fnnews.com Song Kyung-jae Reporter