Trump reportedly thought Janet Yellen was not tall enough to lead the Fed

Federal
Reserve Chairman Janet Yellen testifies before a Joint Economic
Committee hearing on Capitol Hill, December 3, 2015 in
Washington, DC.
Mark Wilson/Getty
Images

• President Donald Trump reportedly believed former
  Federal Reserve chairwoman Janet Yellen was too short to be
  reappointed to lead the Fed.
• Trump reportedly asked aides whether they thought
  Yellen was tall enough, at 5-foot-3 inches, to be
  reappointed.
• Based on other reports, Trump has commented on the
  physical appearance of other senior officials numerous
  times.

President Donald Trump reportedly believed former Federal Reserve
Chairwoman Janet Yellen was too short to be reappointed to lead
the Fed, according to current and former officials cited in a

Washington Post report.

Trump reportedly asked aides whether they thought Yellen, a
former economics professor who earned
her doctorate at Yale University, was tall enough at 5 foot 3
inches to be reappointed, sources said to The Post.

Despite an impressive interview with Yellen, according to the
sources, Trump ultimately sided with advisers who suggested he
choose another candidate. Trump appointed Jerome Powell, a former
member of the Fed’s board of governors, to lead the Fed in
November 2017.

Read more: ‘If he’s so good, why is this happening’: Trump reportedly
blames Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin for recommending Jerome
Powell as Fed chair

Trump appears to have soured on his nominee, who has mirrored
Yellen’s steady interest rate hikes since his appointment.
Interest rates were raised three times this year, and some
analysts have predicted another upcoming hike in December.

Trump has
blamed the stock market’s volatility and recent layoffs at
General Motors on the rate hikes, which he described as “a
mistake” and “crazy.”

“They’re making a mistake because I have a gut, and my gut tells
me more sometimes than anybody else’s brain can ever tell me,”
Trump said in an interview with The Post.

“So far, I’m not even a little bit happy with my selection of
[Powell]. Not even a little bit,” Trump added. “And I’m not
blaming anybody, but I’m just telling you I think that the Fed is
way off-base with what they’re doing.”

Based on other reports, Trump has commented on the physical
appearance of other senior officials numerous times. The
president was rumored to have been dissatisfied with national
security adviser
John Bolton’s mustache, and commented that H.R. McMaster,
Bolton’s predecessor, “looks
like a beer salesman” in a suit.

INSIDER contacted the White House for comment on the Yellen
claims.