Trump Attacks Powell, Calls Him “Loser” (Uncut) 04-22-2025

 Trump Attacks Powell, Calls Him “Loser” as Foreign Investors Dump $750 Billion in US Equities

Welcome back, everyone. Thank you so much for being here. If you’re new, please take a minute now to subscribe and follow my work at worldaffairsandcontext.com, my substack.

I would love to see you there. This morning started with major drama that wiped out more than $7 billion in a matter of minutes from the stock market and showcased the growing hostility of President Trump toward Fed Chair Jerome Powell. Trump wants Powell to cut rates.

As soon as possible. And sure, there is a good argument to be made that Powell is responsible for inadequate policies that, of course, he has been leading for several years now. But a central bank is designed to be an independent entity and not a political party.

Politicians should not be setting monetary policies such as interest rates and making money supply decisions. Just like economists shouldn’t really drive our domestic and foreign policy choices. So first, let’s take a look at the latest post.

President Trump calls for, quote, preemptive interest rate cuts and says there is virtually no inflation. Those are his words. He says there is virtually no inflation in the United States.

Let us know in the comments if you agree with this. Is there inflation where you live? I would love to hear from you. Also, pay attention to this.

As Trump indicated, he wants Fed Chair Powell out. In his morning post on Truth Social, he refers to Fed Chair Powell as, quote, Mr. Too Late. So Trump says here there can be a slowing of the economy unless, he says, Mr. Too Late, a major loser, lowers interest rates now.

The S&P 500 lost nearly 700 billion dollars in market cap since Trump began calling Fed Chair Powell Mr. Too Late this morning. Can you imagine that? And so that, of course, shows you how easy it is, how easy it has been to manipulate the market and make billions doing so. And that’s all I will say about that part.

So President Trump is turning up the heat again on Fed Chair Powell, accusing him of dragging his feet on interest rates and warning that the U.S. economy could slow if the Fed doesn’t act fast. But can Trump really fire the head of America’s central bank, or is this just more political pressure from the White House? A blunt message posted by Trump on social media was, of course, a direct shot at Jerome Powell, Trump’s own pick, by the way, to lead the Fed. So this isn’t a new grudge match, but now, of course, it is intensifying and it is becoming too much.

Behind closed doors, sources say Trump has asked his advisers whether he can remove Powell from his role. Some in the administration, including National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett, have confirmed that the president is studying that very question. So this is, of course, quite an unprecedented tone to use in a social media post towards one of the central bank officials, and it is something that appears to become a norm at this point in time.

It is a low bar to set, no questions about that. In the first several months of presidency, imagine if your boss always kept posting about you on social media, calling you a loser and Mr. Too Late and so on and so forth. That would be hardly acceptable, regardless of how competent or incompetent Powell has been.

So why all this heat on Powell? That is a good question. Let’s rewind a bit. Central banks around the world, for example, the European Central Bank, have started cutting interest rates to stimulate slowing and, in the case of the EU, failing economies.

In fact, just last week, the ECB cut its benchmark rate by 0.25 percentage points. And so Trump sees that and he wonders why the Federal Reserve isn’t doing the same. But this is where you meet and discuss internally these things, instead of making a public show.

He’s been blasting Powell for months now, saying the Fed’s refusal to cut rates faster is putting the US economy at risk. And with global uncertainties mounting, including from his own trade wars, it’s no surprise that Trump wants more aggressive monetary policy. But it is an economic decision.

Well, at least it should be, not a political choice. So how is Powell reacting? Powell actually is not backing down. Speaking at the Economic Club of Chicago, the Fed chair emphasized that the central bank needs to carefully monitor the long-term impact of tariffs and policy changes before making big moves.

So that was a quite reasonable remark. He also warned that tariffs could fuel inflation, and that is, of course, a basic truth. And he also said that keeping prices stable is critical to ensuring a strong labor market.

So those are all good statements. Powell also reminded everyone that the Federal Reserve’s independence is protected by the United States law. We’re not removable, he said, except for cause.

In other words, the Fed isn’t really supposed to take orders from the White House, no matter how we feel about their actions, about their personalities, because there is law. And this brings us to the million-dollar question. Can Trump actually fire Jerome Powell? The short answer is, it is complicated.

Under current U.S. law, the Fed chair is appointed for a four-year term and can only be removed for cause. That means serious misconduct, not policy disagreements. Legal experts also agree it would be extremely difficult for Trump to legally remove Powell just because he’s unhappy with interest rate policy.

But Trump is not really an economist, and his economic acumen is questionable at best, judging by his trade policy choices. And this is exactly what Powell has been referring to. But that doesn’t mean that Trump can’t try.

And that threat alone, of course, is enough to shake markets here in the United States as well as globally. Now, speaking of markets, Wall Street was not thrilled with Trump’s latest attacks. Stocks actually fell sharply on Monday, with the S&P 500 dropping 2.2% as investors actually reacted to Trump’s post and his attack on Powell, as well as the uncertainty around Powell’s future.

I told you earlier today about foreign investors dumping U.S. assets. There is an entire video on my channel. And they are doing that because of volatility, because they’re losing confidence in the United States.

There’s just too much uncertainty, too much flip-flopping, too much volatility. And so that is proof that foreign investors who hold a significant portion of U.S. assets will continue ditching one’s perfectly safe assets in favor of more stable and predictable bets. The central bank, of course, is independent, and the central bank’s independence is a cornerstone of economic stability.

If political leaders start firing central bankers for making tough and maybe unpopular, perhaps unwise decisions, it can actually create chaos in financial markets. Attacks like this one is not what you would want to see in a healthy economy, in a healthy political environment, and frankly, in a developed country in general. Investors fear that turning the Fed into a political tool could lead to short-term decisions that hurt the economy long-term.

So what’s next in this high-stakes standoff? World leaders are actually gathering in Washington this week for the IMF and World Bank’s spring meetings. You can bet Powell’s leadership and Trump’s pressure will, of course, be a hot topic behind closed doors. For now, Powell is holding his ground, but with the economic signals flashing mixed messages, pretty significant red signs, Trump may continue to test the boundaries of his presidential power.

And this developing issue is not really about Powell or his past policies or the policies that he’s supporting now, since he feels that cutting rates would only fuel inflation naturally. This is about the expansion of presidential powers, using markets to benefit a small group of people, and the growing instability that affects the global economy, and it also affects how foreign nations view the United States. So what do you think? Should Trump have a say in how the Fed sets interest rates, or is this a dangerous path? Drop your comments below.

I would love to hear from you, as always. Thank you very much for watching. I appreciate your time.

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