How Trump has humiliated his choice of the Fed

This is the sad story of two candidates for the board of governors of the Federal Reserve who have never really been appointed.

President Donald Trump announced that CNN analyst Stephen Moore and former presidential candidate Herman Cain would be his next choice for the Fed. Both are personal supporters of the president and, not coincidentally, they are both right-wing hackers who have a far-fetched – and often downright erroneous – view of the economy. Both also had a troubling personal story, which seems to be what motivated their two appointments – appointments that were never even officially sent to the Senate.

The announcement of Moore's candidacy on Thursday was particularly humiliating for a man supposed to be considered a friend by Trump. Earlier in the day, Bloomberg News published an article on Moore that expressed confidence in his chances of confirmation.

"I'm leaving," Moore said at the exit.

"My greatest ally is the president," he said. "He is at full speed."

About two hours later, Trump ended his hopes for the role on Twitter.

Of course, the writing was on the wall for days and there was always a reason to believe that his appointment would be a struggle. Last week, senators spoke openly about his diminished prospects, citing his misogynistic remarks, racism and questionable financial history – including unpaid taxes and alimony.

Cain also has a detrimental story: at least four different allegations of sexual harassment were brought against him. Cain, at least, kept a small measure of his dignity by at least seeming to voluntarily withdraw from his consideration, rather than being directly undermined by the president.

Unfortunately, it did not appear that the partisanship of rank and the unfounded economic convictions of Moore and Cain would have been enough to disqualify them on their own. This raises concerns about Trump being able to successfully offer other quacks to the Fed if they have less baggage.

And of course, the GOP senators who finally torpedoed Cain and Moore can not answer a simple basic question: if their past prevents them from sitting on the Fed, how can Trump's vile personal story not be able to disqualify him from the presidency?