Trump urges Fed board to ‘assume control’ if Jerome Powell doesn’t slash rates soon

President Trump on Friday called on the Federal Reserve Board to “assume control” if Jerome Powell does not slash rates soon, ramping up his attacks on the beleaguered Fed chair.

“Jerome ‘Too Late’ Powell, a stubborn MORON, must substantially lower interest rates, NOW. IF HE CONTINUES TO REFUSE, THE BOARD SHOULD ASSUME CONTROL, AND DO WHAT EVERYONE KNOWS HAS TO BE DONE!” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social Friday morning.

Trump’s latest broadside at Powell comes after the Fed on Wednesday maintained rates in the target 4.25% to 4.5% range and downgraded its view of the economy – casting doubt on a cut when policymakers next meet in September.

In another post, the president wrote that dissent among Fed officials “WILL ONLY GET STRONGER.”

Fed Governors Christopher Waller and Michelle Bowman voted against Powell’s “wait and see” approach – marking the first time in three decades where more than one governor on the 12-member board has dissented on an interest-rate vote.

Both officials on Friday warned of risks to the economy as they called for an immediate quarter percentage point reduction, arguing that Trump’s tariffs will likely only have a brief impact on inflation.

“There is nothing wrong about having different views about how to interpret incoming data and using different economic arguments to predict how tariffs will impact the economy,” Waller wrote in a statement Friday.

“But, I believe that the wait and see approach is overly cautious, and, in my opinion, does not properly balance the risks to the outlook and could lead to policy falling behind the curve.”

The hit to inflation from Trump’s tariffs has been “small so far,” and it could continue that way, Waller said.

“I see the risk that a delay in taking action could result in a deterioration in the labor market and a further slowing in economic growth,” said Bowman, who serves as the Fed’s vice chair for bank supervision.

The Labor Department on Friday reported that nonfarm payrolls rose by a smaller-than-expected 73,000 jobs last month,. The unemployment rate edged up one-tenth of a percentage point to 4.2% in July.

The report appeared to give credence to the hiring concerns flagged by the two Fed dissenters.

While Trump has pushed for a 3 percentage point reduction, Waller and Bowman called for more gradual action.

Waller suggested cutting by as much as 1.5 percentage points, albeit at a slow pace, while Bowman simply backed the concept of “gradual cuts.”