President Donald Trump launched another barrage of criticism at the Federal Reserve, saying Saturday that the central bank is behind its global peers in the economic fight against the coronavirus.
“I’m not happy with the Fed because I think they’re following not leading, and we should be leading,” the president said during a news conference to discuss the COVID-19 outbreak and the ongoing U.S. response.
Since the disease’s spread has intensified, the U.S. central bank has enacted an emergency interest rate of 50 basis points, opened up a liquidity program to the bank to add up to $1.5 trillion to the financial system and started buying government debt across the yield curve.
Trump said he is not yet looking at removing Jerome Powell as chairman, though he believes he has the right to do so. He has harshly criticized Powell previously, saying the Fed should be more aggressive in easing the stance of monetary policy.
“I have the right to remove him. No, I’m not doing that,” Trump said. “I also have the right to put him in a regular position and put someone else in charge, and I haven’t made any decisions on that.”
Trump likely could move Powell out as chairman. Powell’s term as governor runs until 2026; Trump would need cause to remove him from that position.
