Top candidates to replace Gary Cohn

March 11, 2018 10:00 PM

Former National Economic Council Director Gary Cohn and President Trump

U.S. President Donald Trump, center right, and Gary Cohn, director of the U.S. National Economic Council, center left, smile during a press conference with cabinet members and Republican leadership at Camp David in Thurmont, Maryland, U.S., on Saturday, Jan. 6, 2018. Donald Trump said hes a "very stable genius," a day after a new book about the president's first year in the White House -- dismissed by Trump as "fiction" -- claimed that many of his top aides and confidants consider him unfit to hold office. Photographer: Chris Kleponis/Pool via Bloomberg

Chris Kleponis/Bloomberg

More so than many of his predecessors, National Economic Council Director Gary Cohn played an outsize role in the Trump administration, serving as a key adviser on financial services policy matters, including topics like Dodd-Frank reform and top regulatory appointments.

Cohn's decision to quit last week wasn't exactly a shock. Cohn had broken publicly with President Trump over his response to violence at a white- supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Va., last summer, and was rumored to have considered leaving at the time. Trump's announcement two weeks ago that he would pursue tariffs on aluminum and steel was apparently the final straw for Cohn. According to published reports, Trump asked Cohn directly to support tariffs. Shortly thereafter, Cohn announced he would resign.

The decision alarmed Wall Street and many in the financial services industry, who saw Cohn as a source of stability in an administration that has often lurched from crisis to crisis. As a result, they are watching closely to see who Trump picks as Cohn's replacement — and whether that person will bring the same knowledge of the financial markets as the former Goldman Sachs executive.

For his part, Trump claims that "many people" are applying for the job and he will announce a pick soon.

Will be making a decision soon on the appointment of new Chief Economic Advisor. Many people wanting the job - will choose wisely!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 7, 2018

Possible candidates include advisers already in Trump's orbit to a CNBC host. Following is a list of the front-runners for the post.

Chris Liddell, director of strategic initiatives in the Office of American Innovation, former GM executive

General Motors Vice Chairman and Chief Financial Officer Christopher P. Liddell at a Volt recognition event at their Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly plant in Detroit, Michigan, U.S., on Tuesday, Nov. 30, 2010. Photographer: Jeff Kowalsky/Bloomberg *** Local Caption ***

Jeff Kowalsky/Bloomberg

Chris Liddell, former GM executive

Chris Liddell, a former top executive at GM and Microsoft, is considered a leading candidate to replace Cohn. According to The Wall Street Journal, Jared Kushner, one of Trump's top advisers and his son-in-law, is strongly pushing Liddell for the job. Liddell has been serving as director of strategic initiatives in the Office of American Innovation, part of an effort by Kushner to reform the government.

Liddell reportedly also is friendly with John Kelly, the White House chief of staff and his choice is supported by Cohn himself.

Lawrence "Larry" Kudrow, CEO of Kudlow & Company and co-host of "Kudlow & Cramer" on CNBC, moderates a panel discussion titled The Great Jobs Debate: U.S. Job Creation in a Globalized World" during the Milken Institute Global Conference in Beverly Hills, California April 27, 2004. Photographer: Robert Galbraith/ Bloomberg News.

Robert Galbraith/Bloomberg News

Larry Kudlow, CNBC host

Trump is a well-known fan of Larry Kudlow, the longtime CNBC cable news host and former Reagan administration official. But Kudlow differs with Trump on trade policy, as did Cohn.

Still, by Monday, there were predictions by some that Kudlow would get the job. "Yes, it's probably Larry Kudlow for NEC Director," wrote Ben White, chief economic correspondent for Politico, on Twitter. "But nothing is done till Trump announces it."

Peter Navarro, director of trade policy at the Trump White House

Peter Navarro, director of the National Trade Council, center, stands next to to steel and aluminum workers after U.S. President Donald Trump, not pictured, signed proclamations on adjusting imports of steel and aluminum into the United States in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Thursday, March 8, 2018. Trump signed the order over steel and aluminum tariffs that he said could spare certain countries if they have strong trading and military ties with the U.S. telling reporters earlier that Mexico and Canada would likely not face the levies if they renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement. Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg

Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg

Peter Navarro, top trade adviser

Peter Navarro, President Trump's top trade adviser, is the architect of the president's tariff plan. Like Trump, Navarro is a critic of China's economic policies and has argued for a more protectionist stance within the Trump administration.

Mick Mulvaney, director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), smiles during a Senate Budget Committee hearing in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2018. Mulvaney discussed the $4.4 trillion federal budget plan that would slash entitlements and other domestic programs in favor of higher spending on the military and immigration enforcement. Photographer: Zach Gibson/Bloomberg

Zach Gibson/Bloomberg

Mick Mulvaney, head of OMB and CFPB

As one of Trump's favorite advisers, Mick Mulvaney is at the top of any list for picks of open posts within the administration. Mulvaney is already serving in two key positions: head of the Office of Management and Budget and acting director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. But he has also been rumored as a possible replacement for John Kelly, the White House chief of staff.

Given that he effectively already advises Trump on financial policy in his OMB role, Mulvaney is unlikely to replace Cohn, but it remains a possibility.

Kevin Warsh, fellow at Stanford's Hoover Institution

Kevin Warsh, former governor of the U.S. Federal Reserve, speaks during the American Economic Association (AEA) annual conference in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., on Friday, Jan. 6, 2017. Warsh said that more reform is needed at U.S. central bank than ever before. Photographer: Daniel Acker/Bloomberg

Daniel Acker/Bloomberg

Kevin Warsh, former Fed governor

Former Federal Reserve Board Gov. Kevin Warsh, now a fellow at Stanford's Hoover Institution, is also regularly rumored for economic vacancies within the Trump administration.

Warsh was in the running for Fed chair before Trump picked Jerome Powell for the job last year. Given that other candidates are closer to the president and Warsh's views on tariffs is unclear, he appears to be a dark-horse candidate in the race to succeed Cohn.

Kevin Hassett, chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers (CEA), speaks during a Joint Economic Committee hearing on the Economic Report of the President in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Wednesday, March 7, 2018. Hassett's name has circulating as a possible White House contender to succeed Gary Cohn as President Donald Trump's top economic adviser. Photographer: Zach Gibson/Bloomberg

Zach Gibson/Bloomberg

Kevin Hassett

Kevin Hassett, chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, is also considered a front-runner for the NEC job. Hassett is a former Fed economist and professor at Columbia University.

Mark Calabria, director of financial regulation studies with the Cato Institute, speaks during a Senate Banking Committee hearing with Richard Smith, chief executive officer of Realogy Corp., left, in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Wednesday, Sept. 14, 2011. The committee discussed new ideas for refinancing and restructuring mortgage loans. Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg *** Local Caption *** Richard Smith; Mark Calabria

Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg

Mark Calabria, chief economist for Vice President Mike Pence

A former top adviser to Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., when he ran the Senate Banking Committee, Calabria is well versed in financial services policy issues. Now the chief economist for Vice President Mike Pence, he has been supportive of the regulatory relief effort pending in the House and Senate, and is considered a key voice on the future of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Gary Cohn, the director of the U.S. National Economic Council, speaks during the Group of Thirty (G30) International Banking Seminar in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Sunday, Oct. 15, 2017. The seminar takes place to coincide with the Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank Group. Photographer: Olivier Douliery/Bloomberg

Olivier Douliery/Bloomberg

Shahira Knight, deputy to NEC Director Gary Cohn

Shahira Knight, a deputy in the National Economic Council, is widely reported to be a candidate to replace her current boss. Yet according to The Wall Street Journal, she has indicated in recent days that she doesn't want the job.

The Goldman Sachs & Co. logo is displayed at the company's booth on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., on Friday, July 19, 2013. U.S. stocks fell after benchmark equities gauges rose to records yesterday, as worse-than-estimated profit from Google Inc. and Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) overshadowed China’s plan to remove the floor on lending rates. Photographer: Scott Eells/Bloomberg

Scott Eells/Bloomberg

Jim Donovan, Goldman Sachs

Jim Donovan, a managing partner at Goldman Sachs, is also said to be in the running to replace Cohn, himself a former veteran of the investment bank. Despite criticizing Goldman Sachs on the campaign trail, Trump has repeatedly turned to current and former officials of the bank as top advisers.