Treasury’s no. 2 jumps ship just months after confirmation

Deputy Treasury Secretary Michael Faulkender is leaving the agency less than five months after being confirmed by the Senate.

Two anonymous sources confirmed to Politico on Friday that Faulkender, who was confirmed by the Senate in late March, is stepping down from his role at the Treasury Department, as The Wall Street Journal first reported. Faulkender’s departure from the Treasury Department comes two weeks after President Donald Trump removed former Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Commissioner Billy Long from his role on Aug. 8.

“I would like to thank Deputy Secretary Faulkender for his dedication and service. Since January, he has played a critical role in overseeing the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s operations and executing on President Trump’s bold economic agenda,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a Friday statement to Politico.

Bessent added that Faulkender’s “important work has supported the passage of the historic One Big Beautiful Bill and GENIUS Act, and the leveling of sanctions against our adversaries,” Politico reported.

Faulkender previously served as a faculty member at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, the Kellogg School at Northwestern University and the Olin School at Washington University in St. Louis. He also served as chief economist at the Trump-aligned America First Policy Institute from 2022 until January 2025.

Additionally, Trump fired Commissioner of Labor Statistics (BLS) Erika McEntarfer on Aug. 1 shortly after the release of a disappointing July jobs report. The president announced on Aug. 11 that he selected conservative economist Dr. E.J. Antoni to replace McEntarfer as the next BLS commissioner.

The Treasury Department did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.

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