President Donald Trump lashed out at Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Thursday morning, suggesting that his “termination” is coming soon - despite having no power to enforce this.
The outburst come less than a day after Powell warned that Trump’s tariffs were “highly likely” to cause inflation and could put the Fed in a “challenging situation” where it’s trying to balance growth and manage inflation.
Powell’s speech suggested the Fed does not plan to cut rates anytime soon – something Trump has been pushing him to do.
Meanwhile, the European Central Bank moved to slash its interest rates on Thursday, further angering Trump.
“The ECB is expected to cut interest rates for the 7th time, and yet, ‘Too Late’ Jerome Powell of the Fed, who is always TOO LATE AND WRONG, yesterday issued a report which was another, and typical, complete ‘mess!’” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“Too Late should have lowered Interest Rates, like the ECB, long ago, but he should certainly lower them now. Powell’s termination cannot come fast enough!”
Trump, who nominated Powell for Federal Reserve chair during his first term, does not have the power to remove him.
The Fed operates as an independent entity from the executive branch, free from political influence. While the president does appoint the board of governors, the Fed does not seek or need presidential permission to make decisions such as choosing when to cut interest rates.
Powell, who was renominated to serve as chair by former President Joe Biden, is set to remain chairman of the Fed until at least 2026, when his term expires.
Powell had already made it clear he would not step down even if Trump asked him to.
Presidents, including Trump, have sought to pressure the Federal Reserve into making certain decisions for political gain, but president explicitly does not have the authority to control it.
Yet, that hasn’t stopped Trump from trying to exert control.
Trump has used his social media platform to share his opinion on what the Fed should do and criticized it for following his advice. The president also recently signed an executive order attempting to seize more control over it’s regulation responsibilities. The closest escalation, though, was Trump’s firing of several independent agency officials
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