Friday morning, Donald Trump went on a Twitter spree that sent both domestic and international markets tumbling — a terrifying prospect, that a social media post could spark a downturn — and it began with the President angry at his own Federal Reserve Chairman, Jerome “Jay” Powell, a man he nominated, who has been serving in the role for more than 18 months.
Trump’s ultimate goal in nominating anyone to any position is to have someone installed who will do exactly what he wants when he wants it done. Unfortunately for him, many of his own nominees actually care about the positions they’re given and have every intention of fulfilling their roles dutifully and adequately.
Right now, what Trump wants is for the Federal Reserve, which sets monetary policy, to lower interest rates, which would artificially inflate the economy in the short term and make everything look quite rosy for his potential reelection.
When Trump saw that the Fed and Powell had elected not to do that this morning, he went a little haywire:
As usual, the Fed did NOTHING! It is incredible that they can “speak” without knowing or asking what I am doing, which will be announced shortly. We have a very strong dollar and a very weak Fed. I will work “brilliantly” with both, and the U.S. will do great…
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 23, 2019
….My only question is, who is our bigger enemy, Jay Powell or Chairman Xi?
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 23, 2019
The timing of the tweet calling Powell “our enemy” coincides perfectly with the beginning of a 500-plus-point nosedive (so far today) in the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
But Powell came to his own defense, even if Trump himself doesn’t understand the first thing about economics. And he did it in advance of Trump’s Friday tirade. On Thursday, speaking to the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City’s annual symposium, Powell semi-publicly lamented that monetary policy is ineffective in steering the direction or outcome of a trade war — basically saying that the Fed could cut rates if the problem was unemployment or scarcity in lending, but that as long as Trump continues his tariff and trade folly, there’s nothing in the Fed’s power to stave off catastrophe that might arise from it.
Trade policy uncertainty seems to be playing a role in the global slowdown and in weak manufacturing and capital spending in the United States. [There are] no recent precedents to guide any policy response to the current situation.”
It’s Trump’s own fault we’re in this mess, and he can only blame others for so long.
Featured image via screen capture
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