So, the answer is 'yes'

[sop]

14. Interesting article at TPM: 'Warsh Hearing Reveals How Tightly Trump Has Tied Himself in a Knot on Fed Control'

Some excerpts:

"As it stands, Warsh seemingly has no chance of confirmation, as senators of both parties object to a bogus Justice Department investigation into current Fed Chair Jerome Powell and the cost of Federal Reserve building renovations that appears to be ongoing. Republican Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) has vowed to oppose the nomination until the investigation ends. Trump has only doubled down on continuing the investigation, which a federal judge repeatedly suggested has no merit. Trump’s words have also tied the president in a knot, as he’s repeatedly and publicly said he expects Warsh to cut rates, and even confirmed he told Warsh this in a meeting. The revelation directly contradicts Warsh’s own statements about Fed independence and his meeting with the president."

"In his opening remarks and throughout the proceedings, Warsh emphasized his belief in Fed independence for monetary policy setting."

"Asked directly by Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI) whether he’d commit to being independent from Trump, Warsh said 'Yes, senator, I do.' He later, however, seemed to qualify that assertion, raising new questions about exactly what Fed 'independence' means to him."

“ 'Independence has to be earned and it’s earned by delivering on the promises, the commitment that the Fed has made,' Warsh said in response to Sen. Mike Rounds (R-SD). Rounds called Federal Reserve independence 'critical.' "

"On Tuesday morning, Trump in an interview on CNBC’s Squawkbox said he would be disappointed if his new Fed chair didn’t cut rates 'right away.' In December, the president posted on Truth Social that the economy was doing well, and that his new fed chair should lower rates."

“ 'Anybody that disagrees with me will never be the Fed Chairman!' Trump wrote on the post."

"Also in December, the Wall Street Journal reported that Trump 'pressed Warsh on whether he could trust him to support interest-rate cuts,' and that Trump 'confirmed that reporting.' "

"Warsh on Thursday repeatedly held that Trump had never asked him to cut interest rates, and that Warsh would never agree to those terms."

“ 'Someone here is lying, then,' said Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), referencing the Journal reporting. 'Who’s lying here? Is it you or the president? Because the president confirmed that he did ask you to cut interest rates.' "

"Warsh has flip-flopped on his policy stance. In the past, he was known for wanting to keep rates high to avoid price inflation. In recent months, he’s pivoted to a stance calling for lower rates. His defenders call the 180 a change of mind. Senators worried it was something more sinister."

“ 'I am concerned that your position on interest rates seems to shift with what’s politically convenient, rather than based on sound economic judgment,' said Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD)."

“ 'Can you tell us a little bit,' prodded Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), 'about your conversations with President Trump about interest rates?' "

“ 'The problem is that President Trump has said he’s not going to appoint anybody who wouldn’t agree to lower interest rights,' said Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA). 'Have you agreed with the president that you’re going to lower interest rates?' "

"Tillis appeared to try and offer Trump an off-ramp during his comments. With posterboards explaining construction and renovation costs, Tillis used his time to rail against the investigation into Powell and reiterated his belief that the cost of Fed building renovations are justified. But rather than mount an antagonistic offense against Trump, Tillis pinned the unpopular investigation on nameless DOJ officials. Trump in January denied he had knowledge of the Powell investigation beforehand."

“ 'The problem that I have here is that we had some U.S. attorney with a dream or assistant U.S. attorney thinking it would be cute to bring chair Powell under an investigation just a few months before the position was going to be open,' Tillis said. 'We have got to end this investigation,' Tillis said later. 'Big DOJ didn’t know about it. The president didn’t know about it. Let’s get rid of this investigation so I can support your confirmation.' "

"Tillis’ characterization, however, contradicts Trump’s own. On the Tuesday morning CNBC interview, the president refused to consider dropping the case...'We have to find out why a small building costs close to $4 billion,' Trump said."

"Warsh cannot be confirmed without Tillis’ support."

https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/warsh-federal-reserve-chair-hearing-reveals-how-tightly-trump-has-tied-himself-in-a-knot