Powell has not suffered a single dissent in the 10 policy meetings that he’s chaired, in contrast with his two predecessors. Janet Yellen had a dissent at her first scheduled FOMC meeting on March 19, 2014. Ben Bernanke got one at his fourth meeting.
There may be an obvious reason for the unity around Powell at this time. The Fed has suffered a barrage of attacks from Trump and others in his administration demanding Powell cut rates. The drumbeat continued Friday when Vice President Mike Pence told CNBC that low inflation means “this is exactly the time, not only to not raise interest rates, but we ought to consider cutting them.”
“I think the president’s pressure has had an important effect,” said Mark Spindel, chief investment officer at Potomac River Capital and co-author of a book on the Fed’s relationship with Congress. “It bands them together, but sometimes raising your hand and saying, ‘I disagree’ can be an important way to communicate.”
This story provided by Bloomberg News.