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- Rep. Brad Sherman told WSJ he wants a labor market "so tight" that people with tattoos can easily get hired.
- This was in regards to his support for Powell's reappointment to Fed Chair.
- Democrats are debating the reappointment, with progressives wanting a new chair who is more climate-focused.
- See more stories on Insider's business page.
As debate among Democrats continues over whether to appoint Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell to another four-year term, one lawmaker expressed his support for Powell and what it would mean for people looking for work.
"I want a labor market so tight that you don't even have to cover up your tattoos to get a job," California Rep. Brad Sherman told the Wall Street Journal. "I want employers camped out in front of my office begging for my help in how to hire people getting out of federal prison."
Sherman was talking about a meeting he had with Powell in 2019, when the Fed chair asked him for help in hiring the newly paroled from federal prisons. Sherman said he wanted to have another one of those meetings, and he's worried about any agenda that might take the Fed's focus off of establishing a tighter labor market.
Sherman's office did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.
Powell's term is set to end in February, and the Biden administration is currently deciding whether to keep him in the position. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen – a former Fed chair herself – has told White House advisers she wants to see Powell stay at the central bank, and Biden advisers are leaning toward recommending a second term for Powell, according to Bloomberg.
But progressives, including New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Massachusetts Rep. Ayanna Pressley, are urging Biden to oust Powell in exchange for a head of the central bank that would prioritize climate change and racial justice.
"To move forward with a whole of government approach that eliminates climate risk while making our financial system safer, we need a Chair who is committed to these objectives," Ocasio-Cortez, Pressley, and two other Democratic colleagues said in a statement last month.
Along with Sherman, though, some more centrist Democrats have concerns that progressives are taking the focus off of Fed priorities. Jon Tester, a centrist Democrat from Montana, told the Journal that a Fed chair "should not be involved in the political footballs thrown around on Capitol Hill."
"That's the reason I want Jerome Powell," Tester added. "He's proven he can maintain the independence of the Fed."
House lawmakers do not get a vote on Powell's reappointment, but as Insider's Ben Winck previously reported, the Fed has not been silent on the issues progressive lawmakers brought up. Central bank officials have increasingly looked into how the climate crisis endangers the financial sector and the broader economy, and the Fed's latest framework - rolled out in August 2020 - seeks to create a more inclusive and equitable labor market.
The Senate Banking Committee will is set to hold the confirmation hearing for Biden's Fed chair nominee.