Trump calls for Jerome 'Mr. Too Late' Powell to resign as Fed chair 'immediately'
The president has for months blasted Powell - whom he appointed to the position in 2017 - over his refusal to lower interest rates, which Trump claims cost the country a 'fortune' in debt servicing costs.
Trump last month seemed to threaten to remove Powell from his role before his term expires in May 2026, though the Supreme Court signaled he is unauthorized to do so.
The president then sent Powell a handwritten note on Monday that he is 'too late' in bringing down rates after other country's central banks already announced rate cuts.
But Powell has consistently said Fed decisions would not be influenced by political pressure - and has hinted that the central bank would have lowered interest rates if it weren't for the inflation risks brought by Trump's tariffs.
The president's latest attack on Powell, in which he wrote that '"Too Late" should resign immediately,' now comes on the heels of Bill Pulte - the head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency - asking Congress to investigate the Fed chair.
Pulte accused Powell of making 'deceptive' statements at a congressional hearing about the mounting costs of planned renovations to the Federal Reserve headquarters.
In his testimony to the Senate Banking Committee, Powell pushed back at reports that the $2.5 billion plans include luxurious items like a VIP dining room and a new marble table.
On Wednesday, Trump called on Powell to 'resign immediately'
'All of the sort of inflammatory thing that the media carried are either not in the current plan or just inaccurate,' the Fed chairman said, according to Bloomberg.
Other costs, like repairing elevators that go directly to board members' offices and marble fixtures, were basic upkeep, he argued.
But Pulte now argues that Powell knowingly lied about the opulent renovations.
'I am asking Congress to investigate Chairman Jerome Powell, his political bias and his deceptive Senate testimony,' the head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency said in a statement.
'Jerome Powell's $2.5B Building Renovation Scandal stinks to high heaven and he lied when asked about the specifics before Congress,' Pulte continued. 'This is nothing short of malfeasance and is worthy "for cause."'
He then cited remarks from Wyoming Sen. Cynthia Lummis, who claimed Powell 'made a number of factually incorrect statements... regarding the Fed's plush private dining room and elevator, skylights, water features and roof terrace.'
'This is typical of the mismanagement and "don't bother me" attitude that Chairman Powell has always shown,' she said.
Bill Pulte, the head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, accused Powell of lying about the renovations and called for a Congressional investigation
Rep. Jim Jordan, a Republican from Ohio who chairs the House Judiciary Committee, told Bloomberg that the committee has not yet discussed whether to investigate Powell but said 'everything's on the table.'
'We'll take a look at that,' he vowed.
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