Trump says it is ‘very unlikely’ that he will fire Powell despite having a draft with his dismissal
The president assured that he has "many people" who want to chair the Fed.
Donald Trump, with Jerome Powell in 2017.
President Donald Trump stated that it is "very unlikely" he is going to terminate Federal Reserve (Fed) Chairman Jerome Powell, although he did not rule out having to do so if circumstances arise.
"We’re not planning on doing it. I don’t rule out anything, but I think it’s highly unlikely, unless he has to leave for fraud," Trump indicated from the White House.
That possible "fraud" to which the president referred is linked to the management of the Federal Reserve with the $2.5 billion renovation of its offices.
However, according to a report from The New York Times, the president did come up with a draft to make Powell's firing official, and consulted several Republican representatives on whether to fire the Fed chairman.
The response from the Republicans was, practically, unanimous. "I talked about the concept of firing him. I said, ‘what do you think?’ Almost everyone of them said I should. But I'm more conservative," Trump stated.
Trump: "I have so many people that want that job"
Despite, for the moment, affirming that it is "very unlikely" that he will dismiss Powell, Trump took the opportunity to assure that he knows a lot of people who want to chair the Federal Reserve.
"I have so many people that want that job... You know what you need there? A smart person with common sense," Trump said while meeting with Bahrain's crown prince and prime minister.
In addition, Trump used his remarks to say that Powell is "a terrible Fed chairman."
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