With the Federal Reserve just hours away from its latest decision on interest rates, President Donald Trump on Wednesday lambasted Chair Jerome Powell, calling him “stupid” while doubting the central bank would cut.
In his latest in a series of attacks on Powell that go back years, Trump said the Fed’s key borrowing rate should be at least 2 percentage points lower.
“So we have a stupid person. Frankly, you probably won’t cut today,” Trump said in impromptu remarks just outside the White House. “Europe had 10 cuts, and we had none. And I guess he’s a political guy, I don’t know. He’s a political guy who’s not a smart person, but he’s costing the country a fortune.”
The remarks came just about four hours before the rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee was to release its statement on interest rates, along with an update of where it sees policy and several key economic measures heading over the next several years.
Market pricing indicates no probability of a cut at this meeting, with the next move expected in September. The Fed currently targets its overnight borrowing rate in a range between 4.25%-4.50%.
Powell and his colleagues have expressed hesitation about adjusting rates with so many unanswered questions regarding the economy.
For one, the longer-term impact of Trump’s tariffs is not known. Inflation indicators are little changed since the tariffs were implemented in April, but various factors have colluded to blunt the impact.
Trump, though, said higher interest rates are costing the U.S. “hundreds of billions” of dollars in financing costs that could be saved if the Fed would ease.
“If he’s worried about inflation, that’s OK. I understand that. I don’t think there’s going to be any. So far there hasn’t,” Trump said.
“But now we have a man that just refuses to lower the Fed rate, just refuses to do and he’s not a smart person,” the president added. “I don’t even think he’s that political. I think he hates me, but that’s OK.”
Trump and Powell recently met at the White House, though little has been disclosed about what was discussed. Powell and his colleagues have vowed they will not be swayed by political pressure, which has ramped up to include other administration officials, such as Vice President JD Vance.
Trump even mused about appointing himself as Fed chair, saying, “I’d do a much better job than these people.”
Powell’s term expires in May 2026, and Trump has said he intends to name a successor soon.