President Donald Trump renewed his talk of firing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell Thursday after the central banker signaled he was in no hurry to lower borrowing costs, as Trump has long demanded.

Trump attacked Powell in a social media post following Powell’s comments Wednesday that Trump's spate of larger-than-expected tariffs could pose a "challenging" scenario for the Fed by slowing down the economy while pushing up prices. Powell said officials at the central bank expect 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:the import taxes Trump imposed this month to push up prices and are determined not to let that bout of price increases turn into a prolonged period of inflation.

"Powell’s termination cannot come fast enough!" Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.

Trump's call for "termination" escalated his long-running attacks on Powell and his 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:attempts to exert more influence&n🐼bsp;over the Fed🍬eral Reserve, which is outside the White House's direct control.

Trump has long pressured Powell and the Fed to lower the central bank's benchmark interest rate, which influences borrowing costs on all kinds of loans. The Fed has held the rate higher than usual since 2022, when it raised rates to slow the economy and counteract surging inflation.

The Fed is a unique government institution that was 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:set up to be independent so that it can make 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:monetary policy decisions based on economic strategy rather than political considerations.

Trump has tested that independence by threatening to remove Powell before his term ends in May 2026. Trump appointed Powell to his current post in 2018, and former President Joe Biden gave Powell another four-year term in 2022. In both his terms in office, Trump has frequently criticized Powell and pushed him to lower interest rates. Lower rates could boost the economy and potentially benefit Trump politically, at the risk of stoking inflation in the long run.

Powell's Not Stepping Down Willingly

However, any move to fire Powell would be a reversal for Trump, who said in December that 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:he had no plansꦓ to have the Fed chair removed. It would also set up a legal clash: Powell has said he would 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:not resign from his post if Trump asked, and that it's illegal for the president to fire the Fed chair.

That question could ultimately be decided by the Supreme Court, which, according to a Wall Street Journal report Wednesday, is taking up a case considering whether the president has the authority to fire the heads of government agencies previously considered independent of White House control.

"I don't think that that decision will apply to the Fed, but I don't know," Powell said of the case Wednesday. "But it's a si𓄧tuation that we're monitoring carefully."

The dispute takes place at a pivotal time for the central bank's dual mission to keep interest rates high enough to keep inflation down but not so high that they stifle the job market. This task could become complicated or impossible if Trump's tariffs cause "澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:stagflation" to set in.

Trump said Powell was “TOO LATE AND WRONG," digging at the central bank's track record on managing inflation. Trump and other critics, even Powell himself, have said that in hindsight, the Fed was too slow to raise interest rates in 2022 after inflation began to surge as the economy reopened from the pandemic.

Trump cited recent economic data to argue that now is the time for the Fed to cut rates. Inflation 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:retreated unexpectedly in March due to dropping oil and gas prices. Cooling inflation would normally prompt the Fed to lower interest rates, but Fed officials expect Trump's wave of import taxes to raise prices and potentially set off a fresh round of high inflation.

Trump also cited the European Central Bank's recent string of interest rate cuts, suggesting the Fed is out of step with its European counterpart.

“Oil prices are down, groceries (even eggs!) are down [sic], and the USA is getting RICH ON TARIFFS,” Trump wrote in the post. “Too Late should have lowered Interest Rates, like the ECB, long ago, but he should certainly lower them now."

Consumer prices for groceries, including for eggs, actually rose in March according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Wholesale prices for eggs fell, suggesting prices on store shelves could follow suit.

Senior Editor Nisha Gopalan contributed to this story.