Jay Powell says Donald Trump couldn't fire him even if he tried
Jay Powell says Donald Trump couldn't fire him even if he tried
President-elect Donald Trump has sent mixed signals for years on whether he would fire or demote Jerome Powell. But Powell made it clear Thursday that he won’t be going anywhere even if Trump tried.
Summary
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell asserts that he cannot be fired by President-elect Donald Trump, citing legal protections under the Federal Reserve Act.
Trump has previously expressed his desire to remove Powell, but legal experts argue that a policy disagreement would not constitute “for cause” removal.
They have the SCOTUS majority and Congress you fuck.
If you're really trying to be bold, do something worthwhile to stop him instead of posturing about your miniscule fucking job.
He is correct, though, that as the law currently stands, Trump can't just get rid of him on his own authority. And changing the law does take time, theres a process to go through. It's not like they can just pass a bill that says "Trump can do whatever he damn well pleases". It has to be worded properly to pass legal muster. There are specific committees that deal with that stuff, and the legislators in charge of that want to keep ownership of it. And he would need to get the entire Republican Caucus to agree, since it will get no Democratic support at all. A handful of Republicans might have their own reasons to not make the changes Trump demands.
Trump can try without going through all that trouble, but the Powell gets to tell him to go pound sand, and the courts got the final say. Even if the courts are in the tank for Trump, it will still take time to resolve
If Trump wants him gone, he could probably manage it eventually, with enough effort. But will the administration be disciplined enough to see it through? They might decide other things are more important, like putting brown people in camps.
I'm not saying he is factually fucking wrong. I'm saying his posturing is useless.
I'd argue he is. Politics and law aren't deterministic, the rules are flexible and determined by how people interpret them. If it was actually a non issue he wouldn't bother saying anything. He's posturing and trying to make a case so that the admin is less likely to start that fight. Everyone has limited time and resources so making it seem like fucking with the Fed would take a lot of both lowers the odds they try.
For those who are saying "Trump can't do this or can't do that...."
Yes. Yes he fucking can.
The American people just voted, in a landslide, in favor of Trump's agenda. And they voted to send more MAGA people to Congress to help him. They have full control of all 3 branches of government now, with comfortable majorities.
The Supreme Court just said Trump is immune from prosecution for official acts, which they define as "whatever Trump says they are, unless we say otherwise."
There are no more "moderate" Republicans. Anyone who is not fully on board the Trump train has been weeded out. They are there to rubber stamp Project 2025. And there's not a single one left who would dare to speak, let alone vote, against him.
This is a "Do what I want and get away with it" administration. Trump will do what he wants. And if it's not legal, Congress is there to make it legal. And if it's unconstitutional, the Supreme Court is there to make it Constitutional.
Understand this. There are no guardrails any more. They've all been removed. And rather than defend Democracy, the American people just handed them the tools to do it. Trump can do what he wants, will do what he wants, and he'll do it to the thunderous applause of the American public.
Authoritarianism is here. It's covered in spray-tan. And it's going to be sworn in in January.
Remember, Arab-Americans. You refused to vote for Harris because of Gaza. When Israel ratchets up the genocide with Trump's blessing, remember that you voted for this.
Remember, Latino men who wouldn't vote for Harris because she's a woman. When you get caught up in the mass deportations or half of your friends get sent back to their home countries, remember that you voted for this.
Same with the white guys. When you lose that cushy federal job because your answers on a random questionnaire weren't MAGA enough, remember that you voted for this.
When it's your daughters bleeding out in a parking lot because of a national abortion ban, remember that you voted for this.
You think you're strapped for cash now? Trump's new tariffs are going to cost you on average about $400 a month. You won't get anything out of it. You'll just be spending $400 a month on literally nothing because the guy you voted for doesn't understand how tariffs work. And that doesn't even count price hikes from the ripple effects of the tariffs and what it will do to the entire supply chain. Hope you've got a plan, because again.......you fucking voted for this.
And this doesn't even take into account the fact that Republicans just got finished admitting that they were lying about Project 2025 all along. They know how unpopular it is. They know people see it as a power grab. THEY OPENLY ADMITTED FUCKING LYING TO YOU TO GET THEIR AGENDA PASSED. JD VANCE OPENLY ADMITTED LYING TO VOTERS IN ORDER TO SHAPE THE NARRATIVE. AND YOU STILL VOTED FOR THEM. And they couldn't even wait 24 hours before taking the masks off and laughing directly in your face. Project 2025 is what we do know about. I'm fearful of what else they've been withholding that they plan on doing.
Y'all are about to find out that the most expensive trip in your lives is going to prove to be the trip to the voting booth that you didn't take. We'll all be paying for that for decades to come.
I'll be ready to remind the dumbfucks in my life that I know voted for their diaper daddy. Believe that.
citing legal protections
...yeah bro, those are just as fucked as the rest of the US.
Unless you're also the President of the US "legal protections" mean jack shit. You will do the Kings bidding or you suffer his wraith.
All these idiots that think they’re untouchable. Repubs have total control, it’s only a matter of time before they come for you.
I'm gussing it'll play out like:
Official act #4: Secret Service, bring him to me, but take a long time.He’s a Republican even though it’s not a partisan office. Trump put him there.
“Legal protections”, fkn lol!
“Legal protections” lmao
These fucking idiots. He doesn’t care. He never has. He never will. And this round, he’s got shitloads of people waiting in the wings to kneecap and bleed out the bureaucracy that’s designed to protect normal people and important positions that need to be isolated from politics by their very nature. This time he’s gotten people to look up the blueprints and they’re going for the weak points. And there’s going to be paramilitary.
“Price is right” rules: call how long it takes Powell to become a political prisoner, at best. I’m gonna say 17 months.
ok Jerry. but... what if he kills you? I bet he can do that with those neato new powers SCOTUS gave him.
I'm willing to bet that the Justice department and SC under Trump will make it happen.
I wonder if he realizes…
He just got the fed reserve act nuked?
Great Job!
So all he has to do is get his faithful blackshirts to murder him and then everyone else will get the message.
Or maybe he accidentally falls off a high building.
The first members of the administration, Congress, or the SC who aren’t faithful enough will be the ones who ‘commit suicide by throwing themselves out their hotel windows’, the rest will rubber stamp any and every maga law, to include anything that would prevent him from being president for life, like his buddy Putin.
They don't even have to do anything beyond publishing the guys home address.
Does it matter? Powell’s term ends in a year and a half, and then Trump gets to pick a train wreck chair that we would be stuck with for 4 years.
Also, he claims he doesn’t want to give Powell a 3rd term.
Thing is, it only takes a minute to be open windowed.
Trump used defenestration; it was super effective!
The Supreme Court said Trump can.
He was moving a bath tub on the roof and he 'slipped' and fell.
It's basically unheard of to order a Fed Chair to resign. Trump might as well ask all the Democratic appointees on SCOTUS to resign. Difference is, Powell is due to leave in May 2026, and Trump would be really stupid to try and force an early departure. Just end up with egg on his face. It will be Trump’s to loot in 2026 in any case,
