Fed Chair Warsh Hires Conservative Advisors, Including Project 2025 Author, Signals Policy Shifts

The new Chairman of the Federal Reserve, Kevin Warsh, arrives at a swearing-in ceremony at the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on May 22, 2026. (Photo: Aaron Schwartz, AFP/Getty Images)

Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh has hired two conservative economic policy experts to assist with policy analysis and planning at the central bank, according to a source familiar with the matter. One of them is Paul Winfree, author of a chapter on the Federal Reserve in the conservative policy blueprint *Project 2025*. The other is Daniel Heil, a fellow at Stanford’s Hoover Institution think tank, where Warsh previously held a senior role.

Winfree and Heil are serving as temporary contractors to support Warsh’s efforts on policy research and special initiatives aligned with their areas of expertise. Warsh has not yet announced other permanent hires, the source added.

Warsh’s personnel appointments are expected to draw significant attention from policymakers and market observers. At his swearing-in, Warsh emphasized a need to create an environment for “the best people to do their life’s best work.” However, his team currently lacks members with prior experience at major central banks, despite his insider status as a former Fed governor during the 2007–08 financial crisis under Chair Ben Bernanke. Warsh has also described his broader vision as a “regime change” at the Fed, a phrase he tempered in recent public remarks.

Winfree’s involvement at the Fed is particularly notable. He played a role on the Domestic Policy Council during the Trump administration and now leads the Economic Policy Innovation Center, a pro-Trump think tank. His *Project 2025* chapter proposed sweeping Fed reforms, including replacing the central bank’s dual mandate (focused on maximum employment and stable prices) with a narrower focus on dollar stability and inflation control. Warsh, meanwhile, has publicly affirmed his commitment to both sides of the dual mandate framework.

Other prominent figures linked to Warsh’s network include former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, investor Stanley Druckenmiller, and Chevron CEO Mike Wirth, all of whom participated in his swearing-in ceremonies. The Federal Reserve has not issued a public comment on the hiring news. The *Wall Street Journal* earlier reported the development.

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