President Donald Trump announced Thursday that he has selected Economic Advisors Council Chairman Stephen Milan to delegate to the Federal Reserve Committee on behalf of Adriana Coogler, who resigned on Friday.
The candidate will offer Kugler’s term of office, which expires on January 31, 2026.
“In the meantime, we will continue to look for permanent alternatives,” Trump said in the Truth Social Post, indicating that the candidate for the 14-year board term is someone else and that Milan could just play the role of caretaker.
Economic Advisors Council Chairman Stephen Milan was interviewed on Tuesday, June 17, 2025 outside the White House in Washington, DC.
Aaron Schwartz | Bloomberg | Getty Images
“He was with me from the beginning of my second term, and his expertise in the world of economics is unparalleled. He does an outstanding job,” Trump added. “Congratulations Stephen!”
In addition to the Coogler vacancies officially in effect Friday, the current term of Chairman Jerome Powell will expire in May. Like candidates in that position, they include current Governor Christopher Waller, former Governor Kevin Wahsh and director of the National Economic Council, Kevin Hassett.
Milan’s appointment comes amid continuing speculation that Trump will attempt to nominate the “shadow chair,” whose job is to act primarily as the board’s gadrai. The president is pushing for a massive drop in interest rates.
Milan is a past critic of the Fed, specifically its aggressive stimulating behavior during the COVID crisis.
Additionally, he is the author of the controversial Mar-a-lago Accord, and plans to devalue the dollar as a way to manage the current account deficit issue in the US.
Milan still needs confirmation of the Senate to a seven-member committee. This is unlikely to happen until the Senate reunites in September. Rate Setting Federal Open Market Committee will meet next September 16-17.
Prior to serving as a senior economic policy advisor to then Treasury Secretary Stephen Munichin at the first Trump White House, Milan was a senior strategist at Hudson Bay Capital Management and a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute of Policy Research.
While at the Treasury Department, he played a key role in the development of the payroll protection program following the 2020 Covid Economic Shutdown. He is in favor of mutual tariffs Trump has used extensively as part of the World Trade War this year, and he was also a strong pro-crypt.
In addition to voting for interest rates, Milan’s role as governor includes financial regulation.
However, his most pressing role between confirmation and January may be as Powell’s antagonist.
Trump has vehemently criticised the central bank chief, calling for a barrage of names, demanding his resignation, and even pondering the legally suspicious possibility of firing him. Current Treasury Secretary Scott Bescent has advocated shadow chairs in the past, deducing that even if the federal government fails to meet the administration’s demands, Powell’s position could be counteracted by the board’s dissent, expressing the White House’s position on monetary policy.
At last week’s FOMC meeting, two governors — Trump appointees Waller and Michelle Bowman — opposed the decision to stabilize the overnight funding rate. It was the first time several governors voted against the fee decision for the first time in more than 30 years.
