As expected, Jerome Powell, the chair of the Federal Reserve board of governors, on Wednesday left the interest rate unchanged, keeping the 4.25%-4.5% goal he’s demanded since the first of the year.
President Donald Trump has been calling for him to lower it.
And the pressure for a reduction, which likely would give the Trump economy another boost, grew earlier in the day when the government announced the second quarter GDP was 3%, “way better than expected.”
Would love to hear how Jerome Powell is going to spin not lowering interest rates now… pic.twitter.com/4nLquFxaZE
— Joe Concha (@JoeConchaTV) July 30, 2025
There have been pressure campaigns for Powell to quit as well as pushes for Trump to fire him.
But Powell no longer has a stranglehold on the board, as two governors, Christopher Waller and Michelle Bowman, voted for a quarter-point cut.
There it is…
2 Fed governors dissent against Powell.
Waller and Bowman. First time in 30+ years.Both hoping to be the next Fed Chair. Not even the Federal Reserve can withstand the power of Trump’s political influence. pic.twitter.com/Mt6FLhkhWU
— Geiger Capital (@Geiger_Capital) July 30, 2025
That dissent had not appeared in the Fed’s decisions in decades.
Powell also has been under fire for a renovation project at the agency’s headquarters that was supposed to cost $1.8 billion, but now is estimated to hit taxpayers for $3.1 billion.
All other economic indicators, job creation, inflation, trade, and more, have been greatly better during the Trump economy than during Joe Biden’s administration, when inflation reached past 9%.
