Obstacles to Confirmation of Fed Chair Nominee Warsh Removed

On the 26th (local time), The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported that the final obstacle had been removed after Thom Tillis, a Republican senator from North Carolina who had opposed Warsh's confirmation, said he would vote in favor. 

Tillis had been reluctant to support Warsh's confirmation, citing the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) investigation into current Fed Chair Jerome Hayden Powell.

However, after reports said the investigation ended on the 24th, Tillis issued a statement on the 26th saying he believed the DOJ's position that the probe had been closed and that its appeal of a March ruling by a federal judge blocking the issuance of grand jury subpoenas was "based on legal principles and would not be intended to reissue the subpoenas."

He added that reopening the investigation would be justified only if there were a criminal referral from the inspector general, and said, "Based on that confidence, I support the confirmation of Kevin Warsh as attorney general nominee."

Tillis also said on NBC's talk show Meet the Press that the investigation into Powell had ended.

With Tillis's remarks, Warsh's confirmation could be completed before Powell's term expires on May 15. Republicans hold a 13-11 majority on the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, and if Tillis had continued to oppose the nomination, the vote could have been delayed.
The committee is scheduled to vote on Warsh's nomination on the 29th, and a Senate vote could take place during the week of May 11.

U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro said last month that if an appeal were filed over the subpoena ruling, it would be "used only for administrative purposes to vacate or modify the ruling, and would not serve as grounds for reopening the investigation."
Tillis said he had been concerned that prosecutors were using the criminal investigation as "leverage" to shorten Powell's term.
The committee is scheduled to vote on Warsh's nomination on the 29th, and a Senate vote could take place during the week of May 11.