Stephen Miran, the nominee to fill Adriana Kugler’s recently vacated seat on the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, said he wouldn’t step down from his position as chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers if confirmed to the central bank’s board. Instead, he said he would take an “unpaid leave of absence” during the temporary term that runs until Jan. 31, 2026.

“You are going to be technically an employee of the president of the United States but an independent member of the board of the Federal Reserve?” Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., asked during a Senate Banking Committee hearing Thursday. “That’s ridiculous.”

Reed’s comments were representative of a highly partisan hearing that saw Miran face a barrage of questions from Democratic senators about his views on Fed independence and his ability to remain an independent steward of U.S. monetary policy.

Miran shared the hearing room floor with four nominees for various federal roles, but he was clearly the focal point, seated at the center of the table facing a semicircle of senators.

Following introductions by Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., who chairs the committee, ranking member Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., quickly went on the offensive, calling Miran a “puppet” of President Donald Trump. She claimed Miran’s cheerleading of the White House’s economic agenda tainted his candidacy for Fed governor.

Warren also alleged that Trump has engaged in a “months-long campaign to seize control of the Federal Reserve.” She referenced the intimidation tactics Trump has used against Fed Chair Jerome Powell to try to coerce him into lowering interest rates. She also called the president’s attempt to oust Fed Governor Lisa Cook over alleged mortgage fraud “illegal.”

“Illegally removing a Fed governor is a key step in Trump’s scheme to destroy the independence of the Fed and turn it into his own personal toy,” Warren claimed. She argued that Miran’s confirmation hearing should have been delayed, and the committee should instead have held a hearing to investigate Trump’s Fed-related actions.

In the Q&A portion of the proceedings, Warren’s questions were aimed squarely at gauging Miran’s independence from political sway.

When asked if he agreed with Trump’s claim that fired Bureau of Labor Statistics Commissioner Erika McEntarfer manipulated labor data for political purposes, Miran repeatedly dodged Warren’s aggressive questioning, saying he believed the bureau was “complacently allowing the data to continue to deteriorate in quality.” He also refused to say that Trump lost the 2020 election, instead repeatedly stating that Joe Biden was certified by Congress as the president-elect.

In prepared remarks, Miran called independence of monetary policy a “critical element for its success.”

“Given the central bank’s outsized role in the economy, it’s no surprise that outsiders have opined on its decisions for decades,” Miran stated. “However, if confirmed, I plan to dutifully carry out my role pursuant to the mandates assigned by Congress.”

He added: “The Federal Open Market Committee is an independent group with a monumental task, and I intend to preserve that independence and serve the American people to the best of my ability.”

Miran’s past writings have argued for a more comprehensive overhaul of the Fed. In 2024, he co-authored a Manhattan Institute report that included proposals to nationalize the Federal Reserve banks; shorten Fed board members’ eligibility to a single term of eight years instead of 14 years; and allow all Federal Open Market Committee members to vote on monetary policy at every meeting.

Most controversially, in that 2024 report, Miran advocated for making the Fed’s annual operating budget subject to a congressional appropriations process instead of its current independent funding from its income-bearing investments.

Scott stated that he believes the Federal Reserve “needs to remain quite and completely clear in its independence.” Miran responded that he “couldn’t be more in agreement.”

Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., addressed the assertions made by Warren, asking Miran, “Are you Donald Trump’s puppet?”

Miran responded: “Not at all. I’ve very independently minded, as shown by my willingness to stray from consensus and have out-of-consensus views, and I believe that I will continue to be as independent in my thinking process if confirmed.”

Calling Miran “future governor,” Kennedy replied: “We’re going to hold you to that.”

Although the timing of a potential full Senate vote on Miran’s nomination is uncertain, the White House hopes to have him in place on the Fed’s board prior to the central bank’s upcoming monetary policy meeting that begins Sept. 16.