President Donald Trump continued his barrage of criticism about the Federal Reserve on Tuesday, but appeared to have stepped back from a prolonged plan to fire Chairman Jerome Powell.
“I think he did a bad job, but he’ll be out soon anyway,” Trump told reporters during the White House exchange. “He’ll be out for eight months.”
The exchange came amid ongoing speculation over legal questions about Powell’s job security and what authority Trump has to eliminate central bank leaders.
Returning to his first term when he appointed Powell, Trump repeatedly criticized the Fed for his cautious approach to cuts, despite lowering the benchmark borrowing rate to full percentage points in late 2024 during the presidential election period. Powell’s term as a chair ends in May 2026.
Trump accused Powell of being political and calls him “too late” when it’s time to adjust the fees.
“He’s always too late. He should have lowered interest rates multiple times,” Trump said. “Because this guy is Numbskull, people can’t buy a house. He keeps the price high, [is] Perhaps they’re doing it for political reasons. ”
The president raises the idea of trying to fire Powell and asks Republicans who gathered in his office last week to ask about the idea. But he quickly called it “very unlikely.”
In addition to criticism of the rate, the White House has raised doubts about the $2.5 billion renovation project the Fed has undertaken at two Washington, D.C. buildings. Administrative staff will be visiting the site Thursday, according to a Tuesday post from the X of White House Deputy Chief of Staff James Blair.
Scott Becent, who said Powell was “a good civil servant” early Tuesday, said the Fed “needs to do a big internal investigation to understand everything else, not monetary policy.
Trump accused the Fed “can spend $2.7 billion on building the building. They will not do anything.”
