Last Call For The Manchin On The Hill, Con't

President Joe Manchin has all but killed another Fed nominee, and it's back to the drawing board for Biden and company.

 

Sen. Joe Manchin, the most conservative Democrat in the Senate, said Monday that he opposes one of President Joe Biden's nominees to the Federal Reserve, leaving her candidacy to join the central bank with the slimmest of hopes.

"I have carefully reviewed Sarah Bloom Raskin's qualifications and previous public statements. Her previous public statements have failed to satisfactorily address my concerns about the critical importance of financing an all-of-the-above energy policy to meet our nation's critical energy needs," Manchin said in a statement.

"I have come to the conclusion that I am unable to support her nomination to serve as a member of the Federal Reserve Board," he added.

Manchin's formal opposition all but dooms Raskin's bid to be the Fed's next vice chair for supervision, one of the most powerful banking regulators in the world. While it's possible Raskin could garner support from a moderate Republican, a Senate split 50-50 means anything but a unified Democratic party makes the odds of success for any presidential nominee perilous at best.

"Sarah Bloom Raskin is one of the most qualified people to have ever been nominated for the Federal Reserve Board of Governors," a White House spokesperson told CNBC. "She has earned widespread support in the face of an unprecedented, baseless campaign led by oil and gas companies that sought to tarnish her distinguished career. We are working to line up the bipartisan support that she deserves, so that she can be confirmed by the Senate for this important position. "

Manchin, who last week said that his own party should advance Biden's four other Fed nominees without Raskin, has for weeks worked to support the U.S. energy industry as the prices of oil and gasoline climb thanks to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Biden has also nominated Jerome Powell to a second term as Fed chair, Lael Brainard as vice chair, and Lisa Cook and Philip Jefferson as Fed governors.

 

Manchin is killing Raskin's nomination over her remarks that the US and the world will continue to have unstable economies as oil gets more expensive and climate change continues to wreck the planet. This is "too political" for her to be on the Fed, according to Manchin, and basically ever other Republican will go along with this.

It's possible that Romney or Collins might save this nomination, but not likely. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska certainly won't.

Joe Manchin continues to know when and how to hurt Biden, and he's done so expertly for the last 13 months.