Trump Expresses Frustration Over Fed Chairman’s Tenure, Cites Unusual Candidates

President Donald Trump expressed frustration Tuesday over Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s tenure, stating that “people are holding me back” from replacing him despite his long-standing desire to do so.

Speaking to reporters at the White House ahead of his meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Trump was asked about his plans for replacing Powell. The president replied, “I’d love to get the guy currently in there out right now, but people are holding me back.”

“He’s a fool. He’s a stupid man,” Trump continued, referring to Powell, whom he nominated in 2017 during his first administration. Powell’s term ends in May 2026, and Trump is expected to announce his replacement before the end of the year.

The Trump administration has been at odds with Powell for months over his failure to lower interest rates, and many have speculated that Trump is looking to use the recent controversy over exploding costs at the Fed’s headquarters renovation as justification for firing the chairman. The Federal Reserve has denied any wrongdoing and maintains that the White House lacks authority over its facilities.

Trump has indicated that his short list includes five finalists: Fed Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman; Fed board member Christopher Waller; former Fed board member Kevin Warsh; White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett; and BlackRock Fixed Income Chief Investment Officer Rick Rieder. “We have some surprising names, we have some standard names that everybody’s talking about,” Trump said. “It’s nice to, every once in a while, go politically correct. But we have some great names.”

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, whom Trump has also supported for the role, reportedly declined, agreeing with Trump that he preferred to remain at the Treasury.