Trump’s Fed pick Moore draws fire over sexist comments
NEW YORK: Mr Stephen Moore, the economic commentator President Donald Trump has said he will nominate to the US Federal Reserve Board, is drawing new fire from top Democrats for his comments denigrating, among other targets, women and the Midwest.
But Republicans, whose 53 to 47 majority in the US Senate gives them the final say on whether Mr Moore's pending nomination is confirmed, have not weighed in since news surfaced this week documenting Mr Moore's long history of sexist remarks, some of which he says were made jokingly.
As a Fed governor, Mr Moore would have a say on setting interest rates for the world's biggest economy. Some economists and Democratic lawmakers have questioned his competence, citing his support for tying policy decisions to commodity prices and his fluctuating views on rates. This week though, it is his comments about gender and geography that are drawing criticism.
"What are the implications of a society in which women earn more than men? We don't really know, but it could be disruptive to family stability," Mr Moore wrote in one column in 2014.
In 2000, he opined that "women tennis pros don't really want equal pay for equal work. They want equal pay for inferior work."
The New York Times, among others, has documented many other instances where he expressed similar viewpoints.
It is just added evidence that Mr Moore is unfit for the Fed job, vice-chair of the joint economic committee Carolyn Maloney told Reuters.
"Those include his reckless tendency to politicise the Fed as well as his bizarre and sexist comments about women in sports that came to light this week," she said.
Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown also blasted Mr Moore for comments he made in 2014 calling cities in the Midwest, including Cincinnati, the "armpits of America."
The senator demanded an apology.
On Wednesday, Mr Moore told Reuters his earlier remarks on women were not in accord with his current views.
"I do regret writing that column 17 years ago and it does not reflect my feelings today," he said. - REUTERS
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