Republican Lawmaker Criticizes Trump: President Has No Authority to Dismiss Fed Chair

According to the Financial Times, U.S. Senator John Kennedy, a Republican from Louisiana and a member of the Senate Banking Committee, fiercely criticized President Trump's attacks on Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. Kennedy stated that no president has the authority to dismiss the Fed Chair. He said on NBC, "I don't believe the President, any President, has the power to fire the Federal Reserve Chairman," adding that he believes the Fed should be independent. This comes after Trump expressed confidence that he has the authority to dismiss Powell, telling reporters in the Oval Office last Thursday, "If I wanted to remove him, he would be out fairly quickly, believe me." On Sunday, Kennedy defended the Fed's focus on controlling inflation, stating: "My interactions with Powell have shown me he has tiger blood. He will do what he believes is right and will not go down in history for allowing inflation to run rampant like a March hare. He will take the actions he believes are necessary." (Jinshi)