President-elect Trump said in a new interview that he has no intention of trying to remove Fed Chairman Jerome Powell, who takes office next year.
President Trump: “No, I don't think so. I don't know.” told Kristen Welker In “Meet the Press”.
President Trump said, “If I tell him that, he will. But if I tell him that, he probably won't. But if I tell him that, he will.” he added.
Asked if he had any plans to fire Powell, Trump said, “No, I have no plans.”
Powell, whose term ends in 2026, told reporters last month that he would not resign if President Trump asked him to. Powell added that “the law does not allow a president to remove or demote himself or any other Fed director in a leadership position.”
President Trump appointed Powell during his first term in 2017, but during his term he repeatedly publicly criticized the Fed and its chairman for not cutting interest rates fast enough.
Trump suggested earlier this year that Powell, a lifelong Republican, was being “political” and could cut rates ahead of the 2024 election to help Democrats. The Fed cut interest rates by a whopping 50 basis points in September, but Trump easily defeated Vice President Harris in the November election.
The Federal Reserve is a politically independent institution and fiercely protects its reputation. Trump has previously suggested that the president should be able to have a say in how the Fed approaches rate cuts, even if the central bank doesn't listen.
