President Donald Trump slammed Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell on Wednesday as the head of the central bank testified before a Senate panel.
“I think he’s terrible,” Trump said in response to a question from a reporter during a press conference at the NATO summit in The Hague, Netherlands.
Trump reiterated his criticism of Powell for keeping interest rates too high, saying the country will have to pay more for debt.
“We’re going to end up paying two points or three points more,” Trump said. “Three points would be about $900 billion a year because of this very average mentally person – he’s an average mentally person. I’d say low in terms of what he does. Low IQ for what he does.”
TRUMP SLAMS ‘STUPID’ FED CHAIR JEROME POWELL AHEAD OF INTEREST RATE DECISION
Trump also said the U.S. currently has a “tremendous economy” and “no inflation,” and that he has replacements for Powell in mind. Powell’s term as Fed chair ends in May 2026, while his term as a Fed board member is over on Jan. 31, 2028.
“I know within three or four people who I’m going to pick,” the president said. “He goes out pretty soon, fortunately, cause I think he’s terrible.”
Trump previously targeted Powell on Tuesday ahead of his testimony before the House Financial Services Committee.
“I hope Congress really works this very dumb, hardheaded person, over. We will be paying for his incompetence for many years to come. THE BOARD SHOULD ACTIVATE. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!” the president said in a post on Truth Social.
Vice President JD Vance weighed in as well on Tuesday night. In an X post, he asked for an argument about why the Fed cut interest rates before the 2024 election and suggested possible political motives. “I’d love to hear an argument for why Powell cut rates 50 points right before an election but can’t do it now with inflation lower,” Vance wrote.
TRUMP PUSHES CONGRESS TO WORK OVER ‘VERY DUMB, HARDHEADED’ FED CHAIR POWELL AHEAD OF TESTIMONY
During his testimony on Tuesday, Powell said that the economy is in a “solid position” as the central bank monitors inflation and labor market data for signs that it needs to adjust monetary policy.
“Despite elevated uncertainty, the economy is in a solid position. The unemployment rate remains low, and the labor market is at or near maximum employment,” Powell said in his opening remarks.
“Inflation has come down a great deal but has been running somewhat above our 2% longer-run objective. We are attentive to the risks to both sides of our dual mandate,” the chair said in reference to the Federal Reserve’s dual mandate to promote stable prices over the long-run as well as maximum employment.
FEDERAL RESERVE LEAVES KEY INTEREST RATES UNCHANGED FOR FOURTH STRAIGHT MEETING
The Fed has held off on cutting interest rates due to uncertainty over trade policy, as Trump has imposed tariffs on U.S. trading partners. Tariffs are taxes on imports that are generally paid by the importer, who often passes some or all of those additional costs on to consumers.
“We do expect tariff inflation to show up more, but I want to be honest, we really don’t know how much of that is going to be passed through to consumers. We just don’t, and we won’t know until we see it. It could be lower than we expected, it could be higher. We have to wait and see which is kind of what we’re doing,” Powell explained.
The Fed’s three interest rate cuts last year – including the 50-basis-point cut in September as well as the two 25-basis-point cuts in November and December – were discussed as a lawmaker asked whether conditions are similar now and could lead to a rate cut.
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