President Joe Biden on Friday announced the nomination of Sarah Bloom Raskin to serve as Vice Chair for Supervision at the Federal Reserve, a powerful regulatory role that would give her oversight of the nation’s biggest banks.
Raskin, a former Deputy Treasury Secretary under the Obama administration, previously served on the Fed’s Board of Governors from 2010 to 2014. Raskin has called for a more aggressive focus on addressing the financial risks of the climate crisis, which is sure to embolden progressives, but may irk some Republicans in her confirmation process.
Raskin, who currently works as a professor at Duke University Law School, is married to Rep. Jamie Raskin, the lead impeachment manager during former President Trump’s second impeachment and a member of the Select Committee investigating the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol.
Biden on Friday also nominated Lisa Cook and Philip Jefferson to serve on the Board of Governors; if the trio is confirmed, the Fed’s board would be the most diverse in its history. Cook would be the first Black woman on the board in its history, while Jefferson would be just the fourth Black man to serve.
Jefferson is currently Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of Faculty and the Paul B. Freeland Professor of Economics at Davidson College, while Cook is a Professor of Economics and International Relations at Michigan State University.
The nominations come at a crucial time for the Federal Reserve: While job growth and economic recovery has boomed under President Biden, inflation is also on the rise, hitting 7% in December, the largest such jump since 1982.
“We are at a moment of historic economic progress alongside unique economic challenges as we work to drive our recovery forward,” Biden said in a statement. “This is a moment that calls for sound, independent leadership from the Board of Governors at the Federal Reserve. That is why I am proud to nominate Sarah Bloom Raskin, Lisa Cook, and Philip Jefferson, who will bring a breadth of knowledge, experience and expertise to the Board of Governors.”
“Raskin is among the most qualified nominees ever for the position of Vice Chair for Supervision, while Jefferson and Cook are talented economists with decades of experience working on a broad range of economic issues,” he continued.
The president said that with his renomination of Fed Chair Jerome Powell, as well as his nomination of Dr. Lael Brainard to serve as vice chair, “this group will bring much needed expertise, judgement and leadership to the Federal Reserve while at the same time bringing a diversity of thought and perspective never seen before on the Board of Governors.”
Biden said that the nominees are committed to addressing the rise in consumer prices for Americans while also “steering us on a path to a strong, sustainable recovery.”
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who previously served as Fed Chair, hailed President Biden’s picks, saying they “are committed to the board’s dual mandate of stable prices and maximum employment and represent a diversity of backgrounds that will bring important new perspectives.”
“We continue to face new challenges as we confront the pandemic and its variants, but we have made remarkable strides to put our economy on strong footing. I am confident these nominees will build on that progress,” Yellen said. “I also know that these individuals will respect the tradition of an independent Fed, as they work to fight inflation, support a strong labor market and ensure our economic growth benefits all workers.”
