A Federal Reserve board member who this week voted against a rate cut said he did so because he wants to see more economy-related data.
Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee told CNBC he was "uncomfortable front-loading too many rate cuts" while inflation remains stubbornly above the central bank’s 2% goal and recent readings have shown "no progress" for months.
With the government shutdown delaying key economic reports, Goolsbee said policymakers should have waited for clearer evidence before easing again.
"I'm pretty optimistic that for 2026 rates will be able to be a fair bit lower than they are today," Goolsbee said on "Squawk Box."
But, he added, the Fed shouldn’t assume inflation will fade on its own.
"I just want to make sure that if we believe that this is transitory, let's not just put all our eggs in," he said.
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Goolsbee was one of three officials to dissent as the Federal Open Market Committee voted to cut rates by a quarter-point, lowering the benchmark to a range of 3.5% to 3.75% — the third consecutive reduction.
Two dissenters, including Goolsbee and Kansas City Fed President Jeffrey Schmid, preferred holding rates steady.
Fed Gov. Stephen Miran, a Trump appointee, favored a bigger half-point cut.
In a post on the Chicago Fed’s website, Goolsbee said the prudent move would have been to "wait for more information," especially on inflation, noting prices have been above target for "four and a half years" and remain a top concern for businesses and consumers he hears from across the Midwest.
Schmid echoed the inflation-first warning in his own statement Friday, arguing that "inflation remains too high," the economy still shows momentum, and policy is only "modestly, if at all, restrictive" — a direct pushback against the case for quick, aggressive easing.
The dissents highlight a Fed increasingly split between members worried about inflation becoming entrenched, especially services inflation, which can be stickier, and others concerned the labor market is weakening beneath headline numbers.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell has suggested job gains could be revised lower, an uncertainty Goolsbee acknowledged, while arguing other indicators such as layoffs and unemployment have been "pretty stable."
The Fed signaled it may pause in coming months and that officials’ projections point to just one cut next year, a stance that could frustrate President Donald Trump, who has called for sharper reductions in borrowing costs.
Trump has also indicated he could name a new Fed chair to replace Powell when his term ends in May, potentially reshaping the policy debate.
Still, even Trump-world voices have been stressing patience.
In a recent interview, top economic adviser Kevin Hassett declined to specify how many cuts he wants, saying policymakers must "watch the data."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
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