Federal Reserve Trump has tried "nice", "neutral" and "nasty" with Powell
In his unsuccessful campaign for a lower prime rate and in his attacks on Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, US President Donald Trump seems to be losing patience. He vented his anger on his social media platform.
21.06.2025, 01:49
SDA
"I've been nice, I've stayed neutral, and I've been nasty - and nice and neutral didn't work", Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. He also referred to Powell once again as a "fool", a "moron" and a "stupid guy".
Trump once again called for a dramatic reduction in the key interest rate to between one and two percent. He wrote that this could save the USA a trillion dollars a year. He was probably alluding to the high cost of servicing the US federal government's debt. The key interest rate of the Federal Reserve (Fed) is currently at a high level in the range of 4.25 to 4.5 percent.
Trump's insults of Powell, who he appointed during his first term in office, are now hardly newsworthy. However, the Republican's latest post gave a hint of how he is struggling with the issue. "I fully understand that my strong criticism of him makes it harder to do what he should be doing, which is lowering interest rates. But I've tried everything else," Trump wrote. Perhaps he would have to think again about firing him, Trump suggested. After all, the president continued, Powell's term of office is coming to an end. He has just under a year left at the helm of the Fed.
The question of whether Trump could actually fire the head of the legally independent US Federal Reserve is uncharted legal territory. Most experts assume that Trump would not be allowed to do so.
