Biden to nominate former Treasury official Barr for Fed top regulatory
job
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[April 15, 2022]
By Andrea Shalal
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe
Biden on Friday said he would nominate former Treasury official Michael
Barr to be the Federal Reserve's top regulatory official, replacing
Sarah Bloom Raskin who withdrew in March after failing to win the
backing of moderate Democrats.
Barr, now a professor at the University of Michigan Law School, was a
central figure at the Treasury under President Barack Obama when
Congress passed the 2010 Dodd-Frank financial reform law, and helped
create the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).
"Michael brings the expertise and experience necessary for this
important position at a critical time for our economy and families
across the country," Biden said in a statement.
The Fed vice chair for supervision is responsible for overseeing the
biggest banks, determining proper capital ratios, and represents the
United States in cross-border negotiations over international banking
standards.
As Treasury assistant secretary for financial institutions, Barr helped
shape the Wall Street overhaul enacted after the global financial crisis
of 2008-2009, Biden said, adding that Barr had strong support across the
political spectrum.
The president said he would work closely with the Senate Banking
Committee to move Barr's nomination forward quickly, and called on the
Senate to swiftly confirm his four other nominees for key Fed posts,
including Jerome Powell for a second term as Fed chair.
Biden noted that Barr had been confirmed on a bipartisan basis for the
Treasury post in 2009.
Senate Banking Committee Chair Sherrod Brown said he would support
Barr's nomination and strongly urged his Republican colleagues to avoid
personal attacks and back him as well.
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An eagle tops the U.S. Federal Reserve building's facade in
Washington, July 31, 2013. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/
"At a time when working families are
dealing with rising prices while corporate profits continue to soar,
this job is vital to ensuring the economy works for everyone," Brown
said.
Barr's name had been floated for another bank regulatory post,
heading up the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, but some
progressives objected, citing his work with some fintech firms after
leaving government.
Biden said Barr had spent his career protecting consumers, and
played a critical role in creating both the CFPB and the Fed post
for which he was now being nominated. He also served at the National
Economic Council in the White House.
Former CFPB Director Richard Corday has described Barr as "a
progressive champion," while Senator Elizabeth Warren has called him
"a hero" for his work on Dodd-Frank.
"He was instrumental in the passage of Dodd-Frank, to ensure a
future financial crisis would not create devastating economic
hardship for working families," Biden said.
Raskin withdrew from consideration for the top regulatory post at
the Fed on March 15, a day after Democratic Senator Joe Manchin and
moderate Republicans said they would not back her, leaving no path
to confirmation by the full Senate.
(Reporting by Andrea Shalal; Editing by Leslie Adler)
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