President-elect Donald Trump said he will not seek to replace Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, whose term runs until May 2026.
In an exclusive interview with “Meet the Press” moderator Kristen Welker, Trump said, “I don’t,” when asked if he plans to shorten the central bank chief’s term.
“Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said he won’t leave his post even if you ask him to. Are you going to try to replace Jerome Powell?” Welker wondered during the interview at Trump Tower in New York City.
“No, I don’t think so. I don’t see it,” Trump replied. ‘But I don’t. I think if I told him that, he would. But if I asked him, he probably wouldn’t. But if I told him that, he would.”
Welker continued, “Don’t you have plans for that now?”
“No, I don’t,” Trump said.
Trump appointed Powell, a Republican and former private equity executive, as chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System in February 2018. Shortly afterwards, during a dispute over interest rates, Trump drove him out.
The two clashed several times during Trump’s first term, with Trump repeatedly threatening to fire him. In 2022, President Joe Biden reappointed Powell to a second four-year term.
Powell issued a sharp “no” to recent questions about whether he would leave his post early so Trump could choose a replacement sooner. He has also said he doesn’t believe Trump can fire him. “Not allowed under the law,” Powell said at a post-election news conference.
The relationship between Trump and Powell will be closely watched when Trump returns to office. Trump lashed out at Powell during his first term, arguing that he did not act quickly enough to ease monetary policy.
Trump attacked Powell again in March 2020, early in the pandemic, telling reporters he had the “right to remove Powell from his post” and criticizing what he said was “a lot of bad decisions in my opinion were.
Trump has argued lately that the president should have the power to influence interest rate decisions made by the Fed.
“I don’t think I should order it, but I think I have the right to comment on whether rates should go up or down,” Trump said in an interview with Bloomberg News at the Economic Club. from Chicago in October.
Of Powell’s job, Trump said: “You come into the office once a month and say, ‘Let’s flip a coin,’ and everyone talks about you like you’re a god.”
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
