Just before Joe Biden leaves the White House and Donald Trump returns, two prominent Republican members of the Federal Reserve Board are weighing in on how fast interest rates should come down. The two — Michelle Bowman and Christopher Waller — say rates can come down in a measured way.

Federal Reserve officials in December signaled concerns over president-elect Donald Trump’s policies potentially stoking inflation, contributing to a more-cautious approach to interest-rate cuts this year and even a pause this month.

But minutes from their December meeting suggest that the decision was a close call — and that there is no guarantee policymakers will lower rates again anytime soon. The minutes of the central bank’s Dec.