From The Hill: The Federal Reserve kept short-term interest rates at a level of 4.25 percent to 4.5 percent on Wednesday, but the vote saw the first double dissent from Fed board officials in more than 30 years.
Nine members of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) agreed to keep rates where they are.
But Fed Vice Chair of Supervision Michelle Bowman and Gov. Christopher Waller — who are both in the running for President Trump’s nomination to replace Fed Chair Jerome Powell — voted to lower them, following an immense pressure campaign from the president.
It was the first time two members of the Fed board, which usually votes unanimously, dissented in more than 30 years. All members of the Fed board are part of the FOMC, which also includes a rotation of regional reserve bank officials.
Powell commented on the decision, saying, “This was quite a good meeting all around the table. People thought carefully about this and put their positions out there.”
“The majority of the committee was of the view that inflation is a bit above target. Maximum employment is at target. That calls for modestly restrictive [interest rates] in my way of thinking,” he said, noting the dissension before briefly addressing it. “We had two dissenters …. you want that clear thinking — expression of your thinking, and we certainly had that today.”
Former Fed analyst Skanda Amarnath took to social media to explain that some “will be keen to accuse Bowman and Waller of being partisans, easily swayed by Trump’s browbeating,” But she says that’s not fair.
“They’ve always been nonpartisan in their analysis and deserve to be taken seriously,” he wrote.
Some lay observers will be keen to accuse Bowman & Waller of being partisans, easily swayed by Trump’s browbeating.
Even while I’ve disagreed with both at various points in their time @ the Fed, they’ve always been nonpartisan in their analysis and deserve to be taken seriously https://t.co/t3QHDqdjxI
— Skanda Amarnath (@IrvingSwisher) July 30, 2025
READ MORE AT The Hill.
