Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell intends to ignore Donald Trump’s constant calls for him to resign, believing that doing so would damage the independence of the U.S. central bank, according to a new report.
Powell has been telling his inner circle that he’ll stay in the role until his term ends in May 2026, sources told CNN, and is willing to endure months of Trump berating him over the president’s demands to slash interest rates.
The Fed chair’s plan to remain in the role arrived after tensions between Trump and Powell two were visible Thursday during an awkward exchange at the Fed’s D.C. headquarters, where Trump made a rare visit alongside Powell. At one point, Powell had to correct Trump to his face when he claimed renovation costs at the site would total $3.1 billion.
“I’m not aware of that, Mr. President,” Powell said, to which Trump suggested the figure “just came out.”
After reviewing a piece of paper Trump handed him, Powell shot back at the president, and told him he was “adding a third building” to the total “that was built five years ago.”
“It’s part of the overall work,” Trump told reporters, forcing Powell to interject once again to inform the president: “It’s not new.”
Powell has been telling his associates that his decision to stay as Fed Chair is not only a personal one, but that caving to Trump’s pressure would risk the Fed violating its long-standing principle of avoiding political influence in key economic decisions.
GOP Sen. Mike Rounds of South Dakota, one of those who’s pressed Powell about his plans, said the Fed chair believes “very strongly” that it is his duty to not concede to the president. “I’ve asked him, and he says no, that would reduce the independence of the Federal Reserve,” Rounds told CNN.
Trump has spent months attacking “dummy” Powell for not lowering interest rates to help offset the president’s economically catastrophic tariff plans. He’s also accused Powell’s decision to hold rates between 4.25 percent and 4.5 percent as politically motivated and biased against him.
The 79-year-old president has been so furious with Powell, he seems to have forgotten that he appointed him in the first place. “He’s a terrible Fed chair. I was surprised he was appointed,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office earlier this month, despite nominating Powell himself in 2017.
Former President Joe Biden re-nominated Powell for a second term, which is set to end in May 2026.
Jared Bernstein, who chaired the Council of Economic Advisers under Biden, praised Powell’s resilience under Trump’s relentless attacks.
“He’s putting the integrity of the institution above himself,” Bernstein told CNN. “If I were a 72-year-old guy who’s getting verbally abused by the president on a daily basis, retirement would look pretty good. But I really believe that Powell is engaged in protecting the institution.”
The Fed chair did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Daily Beast.
