The president-elect, Donald Trump, has stated that upon his return to the White House, he will not fire Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. “I don’t see it,” Trump said, indicating the present lack of intention he has to remove Powell.
Comments of Trump on Monetary Policy in the Past
Indeed, the views of Trump on shaping monetary policy have been widely voiced for years. In his first major television interview post-election on NBC’s Meet the Press, he noted, “I think if I told him to, he would. But if I asked him to, he probably wouldn’t.” This follows previous statements in which Trump noted that he believed he should have input regarding interest rate decisions. “I think I have the right to say, ‘I think you should go up or down a little bit.’ I don’t think I should be allowed to order it,” Trump said in an October interview with Bloomberg News. “But I think I have the right to put in comments as to whether or not interest rates should go up or down.”
Powell’s Independence Amid Pressure
After the elections, Powell assured that he would stand for the protection of the Fed’s independence. He said to the media that he was not going to quit the office if Trump asked him to, and highlighted that the president can’t dismiss him or other senior officials of the Federal Reserve either.
The Role of Fed Chair, Criticized by Trump:
Trump also expressed his low opinion of the job of Fed chair, which he said was “the greatest job in government,” and mocked its ease: “You show up to the office once a month, and you say, ‘Let’s see, flip a coin.'” Despite having appointed Powell, Trump had tried to remove him during his first term after the Fed raised interest rates several times.
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