President Joe Biden ended the guessing game Monday over his pick to run the Federal Reserve, choosing Jerome Powell for another term as chair of the central bank and elevating Governor Lael Brainard to become Powell’s No. 2. From our Victoria Guida: “Biden's decision, which came after months of speculation about whether he would shift gears and go for Brainard instead, restores a decades-old tradition where central bank heads are retained by presidents regardless of party to reassure financial markets and underscore the Fed's independence from partisan politics. That practice was broken by Trump when he dumped Janet Yellen in 2018 for Powell, who had been appointed to the Fed board six years earlier by President Barack Obama.” Powell was tapped for a second term despite criticism that he has underestimated the resurgence in inflation in the economy, been too easy on big banks and not done enough to combat climate change. He also overcame a furious, last-minute lobbying push by some progressives to topple him over trading scandals at the central bank. Biden on the elephant in the room: “Now, some will no doubt question why I am renominating Jay when he was a choice of a Republican predecessor,” the president said at a press conference. “Why am I not picking a Democrat? Why am I not picking fresh blood or taking the Fed in a different direction? Put directly, at this moment of both enormous potential and enormous uncertainty for our economy, we need stability and independence at the Federal Reserve.” The bottom line, from our Ben White — there wasn’t a strong case to get rid of Powell. Biden saw Wall Street’s confidence in Powell’s stewardship during the pandemic, and by his nature tends to favor incumbents, continuity and bipartisanship. But perhaps the biggest reason: Brainard faced a more uncertain path to confirmation, whereas Powell is likely to garner broad bipartisan support. Renominating Powell was the path of least resistance, at a time when the White House is battling the GOP on several other fronts. Both Senate Banking Chair Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and Ranking Member Pat Toomey (R-Pa.), who are at opposite ends of the ideological spectrum, put out statements in support of Powell following Biden’s announcement. “One of Powell’s real strengths is that he has built up strong personal relationships across both sides of the aisle at Senate Banking and in Congress,” said one former GOP committee aide. “That has been an underappreciated dynamic at the committee.” The Senate voted 84-13 last time to approve Powell’s confirmation as chair, with 39 Democrats joining 45 Republicans in support. This time, he is likely to win fewer votes from Republicans, who may want to send a signal about their opposition to rising prices in an election year by voting against his renomination. An aide to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said he is expected to support Powell’s nomination. What’s next? Brown said last week he hopes to schedule a confirmation hearing in early December. That may be tricky given the Fed’s schedule: Powell and Brainard will enter their so-called blackout period on Dec. 4, and will refrain from making public statements until Friday, Dec. 17, after the Fed’s next policy meeting on Dec 14-15. The timing of the hearing is less of an issue for Powell, who is likely to move through the Senate more quickly than other, more controversial nominees. What about other vacancies? Perhaps the most intriguing bit of news in the White House’s statement yesterday was that the president intends to announce more nominees for the other pending Fed vacancies “beginning in early December.” The big one to watch of course is the vice chair of supervision, the Fed’s point person for Wall Street regulation and oversight. A senior White House official said Monday that the president’s remaining Fed picks will likely be more progressive, with an eye toward reining in big banks. “I believe that because Lael Brainard has taken the vice chair role, then as the president is thinking about the vice chair for supervision there will be an emphasis on someone who will be doing vigorous enforcement of Wall Street,” the official said. “That’s where that conversation will be headed.” IT’S TUESDAY — In case you missed it Monday, a brief programming note: We’ll be off Thursday and Friday for Thanksgiving, back in the saddle on Monday. Thanks again to the White House for allowing all of us to enjoy Thanksgiving turkey, stuffing and all the rest without the Fed nominations hanging over our heads. What are you thankful for? Email us at kdavidson@politico.com, aweaver@politico.com, or hit us up on Twitter @katedavidson. | 
