President and Fed chair exchange jabs on camera as Trump again demands rate cuts
President Trump and Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell had a sharp exchange of views over renovation costs at the central bank’s headquarters Thursday afternoon, the most public indication yet of a rapidly deteriorating relationship between the pair.
Trump, who became the first president since George W. Bush in 2006 to visit the Fed, presented Powell with a document that he said showed the cost of refurbishments at the construction site had spiraled to around $3.1 billion.
But Powell, the target of constant recent attacks by Trump and his administration, shook his head and said the figure included renovation costs at another Fed office – the Martin building – which was refurbished five years ago.
“It’s a building that’s being built,” Trump said.
“No. It was built five years ago,” Powell replied. “We finished Martin five years ago.”
“It’s part of the overall work,” Trump said. Powell repeated that it “is not new.”
The president, who has ramped up pressure on the Fed to cut rates in recent months, repeated his call for rates to come lower. “There’s always Monday morning quarterbacks. I don’t want to be that,” he said during his tour. “We want to see interest rates come down.”
Powell has been at the centre of a firestorm since Trump’s second presidency began, with speculation last week suggesting the president was on the verge of attempting to fire the Fed chair.
His term is due to end in May of next year – but he’s been a regular target of criticism from Trump, who’s labeled Powell “Too Late” for leaving rates unchanged this year.
But Trump has distanced himself from reports that he’ll attempt to dismiss Powell, and ruled out the idea again Thursday. “To do that [fire the Fed chair] is a big move and I just don’t think it’s necessary,” he said. “I believe he’s going to do the right thing.”
Trump allies have called for a congressional investigation into renovation costs at the Fed, with Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla) referring Powell to the Department of Justice for criminal charges – alleging that he lied under oath about refurbishment of the Fed’s Eccles Building.
Others, including Treasury secretary Scott Bessent, have attempted to pour cold water on the ongoing feud between the pair. “President Trump has repeatedly said he’s not going to fire Chair Powell,” Bessent said on MSNBC this week. “He might like for him to resign, but he’s not going to fire him.”
Trump’s visit to the Fed came less than a week ahead of the central bank’s next decision on interest rates, scheduled to be revealed next Wednesday (July 30).
Despite Trump’s calls for cuts, the Fed is widely expected to leave rates unchanged as it weighs up the impact of his administration’s tariffs on inflation and the wider economic outlook.
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