Hassett Reiterates Support for Rate Cuts, Backs Proposal for Regional Fed Presidents’ Three-Year Residency Rule

ME News, December 5 (UTC+8) — Kevin Hassett, a leading contender to become the next Federal Reserve Chair and Director of the White House National Economic Council, reiterated his expectation on Friday that Fed policymakers will cut rates at next week’s meeting. “Now is a good time for the Fed to cut rates again cautiously,” he said on Fox Business Channel. He predicted that as the economy recovers from the recent federal government shutdown and as new factories come online and show benefits, there will be an economic boom in early 2026. Hassett also publicly supported Treasury Secretary Besant’s proposal to add a residency requirement for regional Fed presidents. “The reason we set up all these regional Feds in the first place was to ensure we have a federal system—so that regions with different concerns all have a voice in decision-making,” Hassett said. On Wednesday, Besant said she would push for new rules requiring candidates for regional Fed presidents to have lived in their district for at least three years—a move that comes as the latest in a series of efforts to reshape the institution after the Trump administration accused the Fed of “mission creep” beyond monetary policy. (Source: MetaEra)