President Donald Trump took aim at Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell again on Wednesday — and in doing so, seemed to forget that he’s the one who gave him the job in the first place.
“He’s a terrible Fed chair,” Trump said during an Oval Office press briefing with the Crown Prince of Bahrain. “I was surprised he was appointed. I was surprised, frankly, that Biden put him in and extended him, but they did.”
Trump first nominated Powell to lead the Fed back in 2017, replacing Janet Yellen. At the time, Trump called Powell a “strong, steady, and wise” choice. But after the Fed raised interest rates in 2018 and 2019, Trump turned on him — hard.
Now, Trump says Powell is hurting Americans. “The country has become so successful that it doesn’t have a big impact, but it does hurt people wanting to get a mortgage, people want to buy a house,” he said.
Trump’s long-running feud with Powell is well known. He’s called him an “enemy” before, even suggesting the Chinese president was a better leader. Lately, Trump’s accused Powell of using interest rates to help President Biden ahead of the 2024 election.
Powell has made it clear he won’t step down if Trump wins another term. And legally, it won’t be easy for Trump to remove him.
Still, Trump’s latest comment raised eyebrows — not just for the criticism, but for what looked like a memory lapse. Powell wasn’t picked by Biden. Trump picked him.
Watch the clip below via CBS News.
