President Donald Trump’s selection for the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, Stephen Moore, said he is “all in” for the central bank despite growing objections to his potential nomination among Senate Republicans.
Moore said in an interview on Thursday with Bloomberg News that he spoke to someone at the White House on Wednesday and had no indication he would not be nominated.
“My biggest ally is the president,” he said. “He’s full speed ahead.”
He said he believes he’ll win votes from some Senate Democrats if he can advance to a confirmation hearing before the chamber’s Banking Committee. Moore said he expects Trump to formally nominate him for the Fed within about three weeks.
But he said that he’d withdraw if Trump decides that’s best.
“I’m going to do what the president wants me to do,” he said. “If he wants me to keep fighting, I’m going to keep fighting. If he thinks it’s time to throw in the towel, I’ll do that.”
Moore expressed surprise at push-back to his candidacy from Senate Republicans, including Iowa’s Joni Ernst and South Dakota’s John Thune, the second-ranking GOP leader. They have raised concerns about Moore’s past writings in which he disparaged women, and some senators have questioned whether he’s sufficiently independent from the White House.
Moore was an economic advisor to Trump’s campaign and has been a vocal supporter of his policies since he took office.
“Some of the stuff about women that’s come out, this was all humorous, meant to be humorous pieces,” Moore said. “Certainly that’s caused some problems with a number of the senators. So my strategy is I want to sit down with them in the weeks ahead.”
Economic growth, he said, would be more important for women than “some injudicious things” he wrote more than 15 years ago.