President Donald Trump slammed Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell early Thursday after the central bank chose to keep interest rates unchanged, ignoring the president’s repeated demands to lower them to help fix the economic turmoil created by his tariffs.
“‘Too Late’ Jerome Powell is a FOOL, who doesn’t have a clue,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. “Other than that, I like him very much!”
He went on to claim that “Oil and Energy way down, almost all costs (groceries and ‘eggs’) down, virtually NO INFLATION, Tariff Money Pouring Into the U.S. — THE EXACT OPPOSITE OF ‘TOO LATE!’ ENJOY!”
On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve’s rate-setting committee decided to keep rates in the range of 4.25% to 4.5%. This marks the third time in a row the Fed has held rates steady, following similar pauses in March and January. The Fed had previously cut rates three times in the latter half of 2024.
During a press conference on Wednesday, Powell defended the Fed’s decision, pointing to the strong fundamentals in the economy. “The labor market is solid, inflation is low. We can afford to be patient as things unfold,” he said. “There’s no real cost to our waiting at this point.”
Powell also addressed the uncertainty surrounding tariffs, especially with China. “There’s a great deal of uncertainty about … where tariff policies are going to settle out and also, when they do settle out, what will be the implications for the economy, for growth and for employment,” he added.
Trump, who has been pushing the Fed to lower interest rates for months, renewed his criticism on social media. “The Fed should lower its rate!!!” he posted last week.
In a separate post last month, Trump said, “This would be a PERFECT time for Fed Chairman Jerome Powell to cut interest rates. He is always ‘late,’ but he could now change his image, and quickly.”
As the trade war with China drags on, Trump has also acknowledged that U.S. consumers might feel the pinch from tariffs, with higher prices on goods. In recent remarks, he suggested Americans should buy less.
