The Federal Reserve System, founded by Congress in 1913, is the central bank of our beloved United States. In order to promote the effective operation of our economy, as well as public interest, it performs a number of general functions that involve conducting monetary policy, enforcing the stability of the financial system, promoting the safety and integrity of individual financial institutions, and promoting consumer protection and community development.
Suggested Reading
It’s kind of a big damn deal.
So considering its responsibility to supervise and regulate both Federal Reserve banks and America’s banking system in general, it’s governing body, the Federal Reserve Board, would ideally be comprised of some of the most qualified individuals in the country. But since we have the most unqualified president in the history of ever running the country, we ended up with his latest Federal Reserve Board nominee, Stephen Moore—who officially withdrew himself from consideration Thursday morning due to his sordid past (which I’ll get to shortly).
Like far too many Trump nominees, he was woefully underqualified (“I’m kind of new to this game, frankly, so I’m going to be on a steep learning curve myself about how the Fed operates, how the Federal Reserve makes its decisions.”), a white male, has a questionable history with women, and has a prior relationship with the grown ass child who would go on to be king (he served as a senior economics advisor for Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign and co-wrote Trumponomics).
Oh, and he’s racist—the most important prequresitte of all.
In the aftermath of his nomination, much was said about his “damaging paper trail” that includes overt homophobia and misogyny, but Allied Progress—who quite literally are in the business of White House and Congressional accountability—pulled the receipts and provided The Root with an exclusive look into Moore’s lengthy history of racist rhetoric.
Get your popcorn ready.
There’s the time he complained that conservatives were being treated like blacks and latinos:
In June 2002, Stephen Moore Criticized The George W. Bush Administration, Saying It Was “‘A Problem’” That “‘The White House Strategy Toward Conservatives Is To Treat Us As A Special-Interest Group, Like Blacks, Latinos And Women.” “‘The White House strategy toward conservatives is to treat us as a special-interest group, like blacks, Latinos and women,’ said Stephen Moore, president of the Club for Growth. ‘That’s a problem, because we’re not just another interest group but the very base of the Republican Party.’“ [Ralph Z. Hallow, “Conservatives not satisfied with Bush’s record; See flaws in tactics, question agenda,” Washington Times, 06/18/02]
And the time he wrote a parody column after then-Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott endorsed reparations:
In The Column Headlined “Lott Begs Jesse Jackson for Forgiveness,” Stephen Moore Imagined Trent Lott Appearing On Jesse Jackson’s Television Show To Endorse Reparations For “Every American With ‘Even A Drop Of African Blood’” To Be Paid For With “A 20 Percent ‘White-Millionaire Income-Tax Surcharge.’” “Today, Trent Lott continued his quest to politically rehabilitate himself by appearing on Jesse Jackson’s CNN television show and endorsing ‘reparations for all African Americans to pay for the sins of slavery.’ Lott, who is hoping to hold onto his perch of power as Republican Senate Majority Leader, suggested that every American with ‘even a drop of African blood’ should be paid $10,000 from the federal government to start the healing process. When Jackson asked how this $250 billion program should be paid for, he said that he endorsed a 20 percent ‘white-millionaire income-tax surcharge.’ Jackson immediately endorsed the idea and said that this would be a good first step toward Lott’s political recovery. Two days ago on Black Entertainment TV, Lott endorsed affirmative-action policies to help minorities, but in this interview, Lott went much further in trying to demonstrate his sensitivity to blacks.” [Stephen Moore, “Lott Begs Jesse Jackson for Forgiveness,” National Review Online via Archive.org, 12/18/02]
And in the same parody column, recommended that Ebonics should be a part of required curriculum in public schools and that white male memberships at Augusta National Country Club should be turned over to black women:
In Moore’s Parody, Lott Suggested “That Ebonics Should Be Required Curriculum In The Public Schools ‘To Promote Cultural And Language Understanding’” And Said He Would Require Augusta National Country Club To “To Turn All Of Its White Male Memberships For The Next 25 Years Over To African-American Women.” “In their far-ranging and often emotional discussion, Lott also suggested that the death penalty should be abolished and that Ebonics should be required curriculum in the public schools ‘to promote cultural and language understanding.’ […] Lott also said that he would introduce legislation to require Augusta National Country Club, the site of the Masters Golf Tournament, to turn all of its white male memberships for the next 25 years over to African-American women, the group in America that is ‘by far the most discriminated against.’” [Stephen Moore, “Lott Begs Jesse Jackson for Forgiveness,” National Review Online via Archive.org, 12/18/02]
There’s the time he endorsed Herman Cain for Senate just to be a troll:
Moore Said That Electing “‘A Black, Free-Market Senator From The South Would Be Rich With Irony’” Because “‘Democrats Don’t Have Any Blacks In The Senate.’” “‘It’s just enchanting,’ says Steve Moore, president of Club for Growth, a pro-market PAC in Washington. ‘Herman has all the credentials. He fought for the sales tax. He’s an entrepreneur. He was an adviser to the 2000 Steve Forbes campaign. His is an Horatio Alger story. The Democrats don’t have any blacks in the Senate. We, as Republicans, could. A black, free-market senator from the South would be rich with irony.’” [Deroy Murdock, “Cain for Senate,” National Review Online via Archive.org, 05/28/03]
And the time he congratulated a Media Matters employee for graduating from UCLA, while amazed that she wasn’t Asian:
During The 2011 Annual CPAC Conference, Stephen Moore Kissed The Cheek Of A Media Matters Employee And Complimented Her On Attending UCLA Despite Not Being Asian. During the 2011 Annual CPAC Conference, kissed the cheek of a female Media Matters employee and asked her where she attended college. After she answered with “UCLA”, Stephen Moore stated, “You must be smart. It’s a hard school to get into. […]You’re not even Asian.” [”CPAC Gone Wild: Steve Moore Kisses Media Matters,” Media Matters via YouTube, 02/16/11 (0:16)]
After Trump got hammered for coddling white supremacists after Charlottesville’s infamous “Unite the Right” rally, he praised Trump’s civil rights record:
Moore Claimed That Trump Has “A Pretty Impressive Civil Rights Record” Because He “Is Creating More Jobs And Higher Incomes For Blacks And Other Minorities.” “So is Trump a racist who doesn’t care about the future of black Americans? Let’s face it. He’s no Jack Kemp when it comes to talking about race and healing wounds with his words. But Trump is creating more jobs and higher incomes for blacks and other minorities and is trying to give a better education to every disadvantaged black child in America. That is a pretty impressive civil rights record.” [Stephen Moore, “Trump’s real record on race may surprise you [Opinion],” The Chicago Tribune, 08/21/17]
And the time he said a bunch of wild shit about black father’s financial contributions to his household being replaced by a welfare check:
Stephen Moore Claimed That “Low-Income And Black Households” Replaced A “Father’s Paycheck” With A “Welfare Check” Which Increased “Divorce Rates” And Now “Black Women Have Been On A “30-Year Trend” To Outpace Black Men In “Earnings,” Making Men “Financially Expendable. “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. If men aren’t the breadwinners, will women regard them as economically expendable? We saw what happened to family structure in low-income and black households when a welfare check took the place of a father’s paycheck. Divorce rates go up when men lose their jobs. The problem here is especially acute with respect to black families. Black women have been on a 30-year trend of outpacing black men in terms of education and thus earnings. Men are becoming financially expendable.” [Stephen Moore, “The Real Pay Gap,” The National Review, 04/10/14]
And the time he came for Colin Kaepernick:
Stephen Moore Referred To The Actions Of NFL Players Kneeling During The National Anthem As “Shameful And Unpatriotic.”“One of the most amazing revelations about the shameful and unpatriotic antics of NFL players who are taking the knee (or even lying on the ground stretching) during the national anthem has been the near-universal approval by sports journalists. The left has infiltrated the locker room, and sports commentators now all think they are social reformers and muckrakers.” [Stephen Moore, “Why Sports and Politics Do Not Mix [Opinion],” Creators.com, 10/10/17]
And the time he vehemently denied he could ever associate with or even be around a white supremacist, but did exactly that while speaking at Phyllis Schlafly’s Eagle Council with world renowned racist ex-Sheriff Joe Arpaio and a member of the People’s Alternative for Deutschland:
The Phillis Schlafly Conference Also Honored A Member Of The “People’s Alternative For Deutschland,” An Organization Of “Far-Right European Nationalists” Who Have “Marched With Neo-Nazis And Advocated For Germany Going ‘180 Degrees’ In Its Holocaust Memorial Policies.” “The conference also honored several far-right European nationalists, including one representative for the People’s Alternative for Deutschland (whose members have marched with Neo-Nazis and advocated for Germany going ‘180 degrees’ in its Holocaust memorial policies).”[Davis Richardson, “Why Is Stephen Moore Hanging Out with the Alt-Right?,” Bulwark, 04/22/19]
And the time he compared the “utter chaos” in black schools to the “pristine” white schools “only a block away”:
“Jones Interrupted Moore By Saying The Conservative Economist Was Taking His ‘Time To Attack Black People.’” “Moore, a former Wall Street Journal editorial board member, said the problem with public schools in Washington D.C. and Chicago is the ‘shouting, and shoving and swearing and fighting in the halls’ as opposed to pristine private Catholic schools in the same district. Van Jones interrupted Moore by saying the conservative economist was taking his ‘time to attack black people.’” [Benjamin Fearnow, “CNN’s Van Jones rebuffs ‘black-on-black’ Chicago crime claim by conservative author,”Newsweek, 12/19/18]
Yeah, it’s a lot.
“Stephen Moore may hit all the right notes with the worst elements of Trump’s base — from racism to misogyny to contempt for safety net programs like Social Security — but he’s so far out of the mainstream that it would be a political liability for any Senator to support him,” Patrice N. Snow, Press Secretary of Allied Progress, told The Root. “He has no business serving anywhere in the government, let alone overseeing the nation’s monetary policy, a cornerstone of our economy. Based on his rhetoric, it’s clear communities of color would not be of particular concern to him when helping shape that policy.”
And none of the above even includes Moore’s penchant for co-signing comedian Chris Rock when expressing his own disdain for social security:
“By the time [black people] collect the benefits after paying into [social security] for 40 years, they die and they get nothing out of it.” [“Dolans Unscripted,” CNN,12/08/04]
Or his claims that Trump did more for black economic progress in six months then former President Obama did in eight years.
But as I mentioned before, he’s the prototypical Trump nominee; a “charlatan whom the conservative movement pretends is an expert.” Which means that despite his incompetence and deeply problematic resume he was still somehow a viable candidate.
And despite the fact that he won’t be joining the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, it’s only a matter of time until Trump selects another one of his sycophants who will.
Straight From 
Sign up for our free daily newsletter.