Fed Governor Stephen Miran Breaks Ranks, Urges Aggressive Rate Cuts In 2026

Key Points

1. A Fed governor says more than 1 percentage point of rate cuts is justified this year.
2. The debate is not only about inflation, but about how much “restraint” the Fed is still imposing.
3. Because the dollar anchors global finance, faster U.S. cuts would ripple into Brazil and the rest of Latin America.

A sitting Federal Reserve governor is making an unusually blunt case for faster U.S. rate cuts in 2026—and he is doing it from inside the institution that normally speaks in careful, committee-approved language.

Stephen Miran, a member of the Fed’s Board of Governors whose term ends on January 31, said in a Fox Business interview that “more than 100 basis points” of cuts could be justified this year.

In plain terms, he is calling for the Fed to lower its benchmark interest rate by more than a full percentage point to keep the economy moving.

Miran’s argument is straightforward. He says policy is “clearly restrictive” and is dragging on growth. In his view, the Fed can ease without losing control of inflation, which he has described as close to the central bank’s 2% target once the underlying trend is stripped of noise.

A Fed Divide With Global Ripples

That stance matters because it highlights a split inside the Fed. Reuters reported the benchmark rate was in the 3.50%–3.75% range after reductions last year, including a quarter-point cut in December.

Miran has already shown he prefers bigger steps, previously dissenting in favor of a 50-basis-point move when colleagues chose 25. His profile also gives the comments extra weight—and extra controversy.

Miran joined the Board in 2025 to complete a term, after serving as chair of President Donald Trump’s Council of Economic Advisers.

His background spans Treasury economic-policy work and years in financial markets, including at Hudson Bay Capital Management and the Manhattan Institute. Supporters see a policymaker willing to admit when high rates are biting.

Critics see a figure whose ties to a conservative White House inevitably invite political interpretation, even when the core debate is technical: whether keeping rates high risks choking investment, housing, and hiring.

For Brazil and the wider region, the stakes are real. Faster Fed cuts can weaken the dollar, ease global borrowing costs, and open space for emerging-market central banks to loosen policy—while also raising the risk of renewed inflation if global demand rebounds too quickly.

Related coverage: Brazil’s Morning Call | Colombia Warns It Will Defend Its Sovereignty if the U.S. In This is part of The Rio Times’ daily coverage of global affairs and Latin American financial news.