White House will have to bow to reality, sooner or later

The differences between Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and US President Donald Trump on interest rates are no secret, nor is the pressure Trump is applying to try and get the head of the Fed to do what he wants.

"The Fed really owes it to the American people to get interest rates down. That's the only thing he's good for. I am not happy with him. If I want him out of there he'll be out real fast believe me," Trump told the media on Thursday, accusing the central bank chief of "playing politics" by not cutting interest rates to help cushion the inflation and unemployment shock waves of his tariff policies.

His remarks came after Powell on Wednesday warned Trump's tariff policies risk pushing inflation and unemployment further from the central bank's goals, which it is mandated by Congress to manage. The Fed was "well positioned to wait for greater clarity" about Trump's policies and their impact, Powell said, making no secret that the Fed disagreed with the Trump administration's abuse of tariffs.