Kevin Warsh’s first Fed test is here: He must navigate hawks ‘on the offensive’ and Wall Street’s hunger for details on regime change

Kevin Warsh has, to the best of his abilities, stayed out of the limelight in the run-up to taking over as chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve. He had no plans to overshadow the final throes of Jerome Powell’s leadership; staying well away from the halls of the central bank and its staff, steering clear of media appearances, and keeping his answers in confirmation hearings suitably vague.Warsh has been in post for a number of weeks now, but for the first time this week, elements of his much-anticipated policy stance will be made public. Firstly, he will lead the meeting of the rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) beginning today, and upon its conclusion Wednesday afternoon, will appear before world media facing a barrage of questions about what his proposed “regime change” at the central bank might look like.Warsh’s tone may be lighter than Powell’s: where his predecessor was cautiously monitoring AI’s impact on the labor market, Warsh is incredibly bullish about its potential. Where Powell favored a wait-and-see approach to monetary policy, a more optimistic Warsh leans dovish. The mood of press conferences may be lighter. In his confirmation hearing, Warsh shared anecdotes about friends in the room. He cracked a joke or two—even in the face of a grilling from Senator Elizabeth Warren about his personal assets. But Wall Street shouldn’t settle in for a breezy chairman, ready to air the details of central bank thinking. Indeed, Warsh has suggested he would like to roll back elements of forward guidance in order not to subject the Fed to a predetermined path. Warsh’s confidence, in part, may be thanks to his familiarity with the rigmarole of central banking—he previously served as a governor under Chairman Ben Bernanke between 2006 and 2011, through the great financial crisis. But while he has that familiarity (and a few weeks of “how-do-you-dos” under his belt), the FOMC meeting will be the fi