How Trump’s Attacks on the Fed’s Powell Have Intensified
- Powell’s termination cannot come fast enough!
- I don’t know why it would be so bad, but I’m not going to fire him.
- I talked about the concept of firing him.
President Trump’s relationship with Jerome H. Powell, the chair of the Federal Reserve, has almost always been rocky.
Mr. Trump nominated Mr. Powell to his post in 2017. But throughout the president’s first term, he made a habit of heckling Mr. Powell and his colleagues at the Fed.
The pace and intensity of the attacks have escalated during Mr. Trump’s second term. He has moved from name-calling to more overtly demanding that Mr. Powell, whose term ends in May 2026, either lower interest rates or resign. (Mr. Trump has nicknamed Mr. Powell “Too Late.”)
During a meeting with Republicans in the Oval Office last week, the president showed off a copy of a draft letter written to fire Mr. Powell.
Trump’s public statements about Powell
Plotted monthly
The New York Times analyzed what Mr. Trump has said about Mr. Powell on social media and in public interviews and press conferences during his first and second terms. In his second term, Mr. Trump has targeted Mr. Powell on approximately 43 separate occasions, all of them since April. The attacks have far outpaced those made during the entirety of Mr. Trump’s first four years in office, over which he critiqued Mr. Powell on about 30 occasions.
Mr. Trump’s comments about Mr. Powell fall into four broad categories. A selection of statements in each category are shown below.
Threats and calls for resignation
- I’m not happy with him. I let him know it and, oh, if I want him out, he’ll be out of there real fast.
- ‘Too Late’ should resign immediately!!!
- I think if Jerome Powell stepped down, it would be a great thing.
- I’d love it if he wants to resign.
SECOND TERM
Mr. Trump reignited his yearslong feud with Mr. Powell in April, after the Fed chair warned that the Trump administration’s tariffs could lead to a “challenging scenario” for the central bank by putting its two main goals — stable inflation and a healthy labor market — in tension.
A day later, Mr. Trump lashed out at Mr. Powell in a lengthy post on Truth Social, saying that his “termination cannot come fast enough!”
He did not say if he would actually take steps to fire Mr. Powell. But weeks later, he told reporters at an event at the White House that Mr. Powell would be “out of there real fast” if Mr. Trump asked him to leave.
That has proved not to be the case so far, as Mr. Trump has made multiple calls for Mr. Powell’s resignation, and the Fed chair has yet to step down.
For his part, Mr. Powell has repeatedly asserted that he intends to serve out his full term and maintain the Fed’s independence in setting monetary policy.
“People can say whatever they want,” he said in April after Mr. Trump’s first round of attacks. “That’s fine. That’s not a problem, but we will do what we do strictly without consideration of political or any other extraneous factors.”
Equivocations
He later hinted on social media that he might reconsider his decision. Earlier this month, when reports surfaced that he had discussed firing Mr. Powell with House Republicans, he seemed indecisive. Mr. Trump and his supporters have accused Mr. Powell of mishandling a project and lying to Congress. Insults hurled by Mr. Trump at Mr. Powell have ranged from questioning his intelligence to criticizing his personality. Mr. Trump’s first public attack on the Fed came in 2018, but such rebukes were uncommon until he assumed office. Initially, Mr. Trump’s criticisms of the Fed and Mr. Powell were more measured, but by his second term, he became more direct in his demands for rate cuts. Compliments mixed with criticisms characterized Mr. Trump’s relationship with Mr. Powell, with the former praising him in one moment and disparaging him in the next. Despite their complicated relationship, Mr. Trump did acknowledge Mr. Powell’s performance during the Covid pandemic. Their first formal meeting this year was cordial, despite Mr. Trump previously calling Mr. Powell a “FOOL.” The Fed later clarified that Mr. Powell did not discuss monetary policy during the meeting, emphasizing the institution’s non-political decision-making process. To ensure the seamless integration of the original content into a WordPress platform, we will need to carefully transfer the HTML tags, images, HTML header, and key points. By following these steps, we can maintain the integrity of the original content while optimizing it for WordPress.
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