Pressure secretary of the White House, Karoline Leavitt, said on Tuesday at a press briefing that President Trump thought that the Fed and President Powell had “made movements and measures” in the name of “politics rather than in the name of what is good for the American economy”.
The president has the right to “express his dissatisfaction with the Fed, and he has the right to say that he thinks that interest rates should be lower,” she said.
Trump’s best economic adviser, Kevin Hassett, said on Friday that the president explored means of relieving Powell of his role before the expiration of his mandate in May 2026. On Tuesday, Leavitt reiterated that Hassett “questioned the independence of the Fed” and if the central bank acted in the “best interest of the economy, or it does for sharing reasons”.
