President Trump has renewed his attacks on Jerome Powell by posting a meme that shows him firing the Federal Reserve chairman.
Over the weekend, Trump used his Truth Social page to post a cartoon of him yelling “You’re Fired” as a dejected-looking Powell carries a box of personal belongings. The post had no text accompaniment and the White House offered no explanation on whether this a harbinger of things to come or another example of Trump trolling Powell.
The aspects of a president’s authority to fire Federal Reserve officials are being debated as Trump is attempting to remove Federal Reserve Gov. Lisa Cook following accusations that she committed mortgage fraud. Cook, who has not been criminally charged, has sued the president to stop his actions while Trump has asked the Supreme Court to affirm whether he can eject her from office based solely on unsubstantiated charges.
If the reserve uses the word federal in it to mislead that it is part of the federal government then of course it should fall under the executive branch. We need to go back to the gold standard backed economy. printing money and making loans with money you don’t have is a disaster waiting to happen.
Hi Greg (and anyone who agrees with Greg’s comments here),
Your comment gives me the chills. I don’t know how old you are or whether you completed a high school education in the US or not, but assuming you did at least study some US history and civics in the US, it is clear that you didn’t pay attention. That’s OK, because many of us weren’t very attentive to these things in high school; there’s plenty of time to beef up this kind of knowledge in adulthood for those who are willing to live up to their duties as citizen voters to make informed decisions at the voting booth.
What gives me chills is that you seem to believe that (a.) the executive has absolute sovereign authority to dictate everything that goes on in the government; he doesn’t. The US Constitution provides for a balance of powers, and the executive administers the government under law and enforces the laws which are established by congress (the House of Representatives and the House of the Senate), and the courts settle disputes under the constitution and under those laws; (b.) spending “money you don’t have is a disaster waiting to happen”, which is a clear indication that you have little to understanding of US history or of financial markets. If the founders of our nation had only relied on funds which they had in-hand to fund the revolution, we would be ruled by Great Britain to this day. Not only that, but very few Americans would ever own homes. Taking out a mortgage to buy a home is buying a big ticket item without having the money (or gold bars) in-hand to do so; a mortgage is a loan to close the gap between what you have now and what you hope to earn to pay the difference, with interest, over time. (c.) that by abandoning the gold standard we created the federal reserve system. The two are not the same nor are they even really directly related. Alexander Hamilton set up the foundation of what is now our federal reserve system long before the gold standard was abandoned. You clearly don’t understand what the gold standard was or even what a dollar bill is. I suggest that you taka a dollar bill out of your wallet, assuming you have either, and read the top of the front of the bill where it clearly states that it is a “Federal Reserve Note”. What this means is that you are holding nothing more than an IOU that is backed by the full faith and strength of the United States Government, which to-date has never defaulted on its financial obligations to make timely and full payment on its debt obligations, in spite of recent repeated reckless threats and acts of self-aggrandizing irresponsible elected leaders who have been trusted to hold power by uninformed, uneducated and manipulated people (voters like you) who are too lazy to live up to their responsibilities to seek the necessary knowledge to make informed decisions about whom to elect at the ballot box.
I am sure that you are not aware that governments in the US account for expenses differently than businesses do. For example, if a business buys or builds a building (a long-term asset), the business writes off the expense against income over years, even decades, in the form of depreciation, as the asset ages and deteriorates. Governments are required to write the entire expense in the year that the actual expenditure is made (a building, which may remain in service for over a century is expensed all at once at the time it is built). Looking at governmental bookkeeping can be very misleading during times of major infrastructural investments and improvements necessary for economic growth and stability. Balancing a budget while expensing long-term assets at once is not only impractical but imprudent. The problem is that politicians use the public’s ignorance to mischaracterize these expenditures for political gains to grab and keep power.
Like you, I didn’t pay much attention to history or civics in high school, but I have spent decades since studying US and world history and business and I have been a real estate broker for over 39 years, mostly in commercial investment real estate brokerage. In addition to my college degree and real estate education, I have been educated and licensed over the years as a Certified Public Accountant, a Certified Financial Planner, and a Registered Investment Advisor as well as completed training in both the CCIM and CFA programs. I am not suggesting that these are the prerequisites for being an informed voter, but I am suggesting that your comment demonstrates a clear lack of understanding of how our governmental and financial systems work, and that is very troubling to me, assuming that you are a real estate “professional” dispensing financial advice to consumers and accepting money to do so.
I hope that you will use your library card to check out and read educational materials from reliable peer-reviewed sources and stop listening to whoever is feeding you the misinformation that led you to write your uninformed and misguided comment.
My ancestors fought and shed blood for you as far back as the Civil War and in every major conflict since so that you would have the right and privilege to vote and speak your mind. If you don’t take those rights and privileges seriously enough to seek the reliable information to make informed decisions about how to vote, then all will be wasted when self-serving power-hunger charlatans, like those in power today, use your ignorance to take away your rights, with your uninformed consent.
BEWARE OF FALSE PROPHETS!
A child in the White House.
Leonard, how about an adult response. Both sides would certainly be better off with adult comments and arguments, rather than childish taunts.
Powell should be fired because he does not care about American buyers. His lazy attitude says ” cash investor buyers keep buying the good old USA ” who suffers? My sweet American clients trying to buy a home!
Michael, Leonard’s response was right on. You are asking him for an adult response but not asking that from the President of The United States? He is like a 10 year old bully not a leader. You say something against him he throws a fit and then fires you or calls you names. If he spent any time at all leading this country instead of lining his and his familiy’s pockets and truthing bully remarks then this country wouldn’t be in the state it is in. A President needs a spine and this one’s spine is made of Jello always has been since he was a kid. He portrays himself as tough but he is the biggest insecure narcissist there is. You catch him at anything it is a “witch hunt”. He thinks rules don’t apply to him. When he starts acting presidential and like an adult then maybe people will start treating him like one. Him and his family are going to leave their pockets full and this country in ruins as they laugh all the way to the bank. Oh by the way apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. Eric had a meltdown on live tv yesterday. Blame Powell for the economy not Trump’s tariffs. Thinking of buying furniture or getting your medicine made overseas, good luck! God help us all in keeping this country together until we can kick the baby out of the nursery in 2028 and put our country back together!
I vote for Trump to fire Powell. Personally, I am wondering what Powell is hiding that he refuses to have it reveals until he retires. Look at how much he’s spending for renovations of his quarters – even a roof top area. Come on $2.5M for renovations. How bad can it be.