Trump threatens to fire Powell if the Fed Chair decides to stay on after his term ends next month
Apr 15, 2026, 6:31 AM
President Donald Trump has again threatened to fire Jerome Powell if the Federal Reserve Chair decides to stay on the central bank’s governing board after his term as chair expires next month.
“Well then I’ll have to fire him, OK?” Trump told Fox Business in an interview that aired Wednesday when reminded that Powell has said he won’t leave with an investigation still pending against him.
Powell said he would remain as chair of the Fed’s interest rate-setting committee after his term ends if no successor has been confirmed. And he said he could stay even longer if the investigation continues.
Trump has for months wanted to remove Powell as chair of the Fed, saying he has been too slow in orchestrating interest rate cuts that would give the U.S. economy a quick boost.
Trump has nominated former Fed official Kevin Warsh to succeed Powell. Yet Warsh’s confirmation has been delayed by a Justice Department investigation into brief comments Powell made before the Senate Banking Committee last June about the Fed’s building renovation. Sen. Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican, has said he won’t vote to confirm any Fed nominees until the investigation is dropped.
