Fed’s Bullard, Mester Advocated for Half-Point Increase at Last FOMC Meeting

President and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis James Bullard speaks during an interview with AFP in Washington on August 6, 2019. Alastair Pike/AFP via Getty Images

While the Federal Reserve voted to raise interest rates by 25 basis points this month, two central bank officials have revealed that they advocated for larger rate increases to combat elevated inflation.

St. Louis Fed Bank President James Bullard told reporters at the Greater Jackson Chamber in Jackson, Tennessee, during an event that he advanced the case for a 50-basis-point boost to the benchmark fed funds rates at the February Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) policy meeting.