Senator Joe Manchin Delivers ‘People’s Elbow’ to Biden Nominee for Federal Reserve, Causing Her to Withdraw from Consideration

Sarah Bloom Raskin, the nominee of President Biden to serve as Federal Reserve vice chair of supervision, withdrew from consideration​ Tuesday, after three moderate senators effectively blocked her path to confirmation.

Raskin sent a letter to Biden on Tuesday asking him to withdraw her nomination amid “relentless attacks by special interests,” The New Yorker first reported. Her withdrawal comes one day after Senators Joe Manchin (D-WVA), Susan Collins (R-ME) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) announced their opposition to her nomination.

Centris Senator Joe Manchin (D-WVA) announced his opposition on Monday, throwing the nomination into doubt in the Senate. His opposition meant she would need at least one Republican to support her to be confirmed, and there were no immediate volunteers.

The opposition from Manchin and Republicans is based on Raskin’s position on climate change. Opponents argued she would support factoring in the economic risks of climate change when making fed policy decisions.

Raskin would have needed unanimous support from all 50 Democratic senators to be confirmed without any Republican crossover votes. But her path to confirmation closed when Manchin announced he could not vote for Raskin because of her views on climate.

Along with Manchin’s decision, Republicans on the Senate Banking committee, led by Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania, stalled her nomination for about a month, boycotting meetings so Democrats lacked a quorum to hold a vote and send her nomination to the floor of the Senate.​

Banking Committee Chair Sherrod Brown (D-OH), said Raskin was the target of a “disingenuous smear campaign” led by Republicans and “talking points written by the oil and gas industry.”

“Sadly, the American people will be denied a thoughtful, experienced public servant who was ready to fight inflation, stand up to Wall Street and corporate special interest, and protect our economy from foreign cyber-attacks, and climate change,” Brown said in a statement. “She was unanimously confirmed twice by the Senate and has unquestionable qualifications.”

Raskin, 60, was a member of the Fed Board from 2010 to 2014. She is married to Representative Jamie Raskin (D-MD).