How Trump Could, Couldn’t Sway Fed: What to Know in Washington

What a Reelected Trump Could and Couldn’t Do to Sway the Fed

Central bank independence is emerging as a campaign issue in 2024, as both supporters and opponents of former President Donald Trump increasingly question whether he would, if reelected, seek to reduce the autonomy of the Federal Reserve.

Trump has already said he wouldn’t re-hire Fed Chair Jerome Powell, whom he had discussed firing in 2018. And though neither Trump nor his campaign has taken an official stand on the Fed’s autonomy, some informal advisers have floated ideas about possible changes to the institution that would give him more power over the central bank.

That’s convinced many people that Trump would take action on the subject in a second term — 44% of respondents in a May survey of Bloomberg readers said they expected him to weaken the Fed’s independence or limit its power. By contrast, only 5% said that President Joe Biden would go beyond comments on monetary policy or calls for reduce interest rates if reelected.

A longer-term project to reshape the Fed would involve amending the law that created it, which would require an act of Congress. Read More

• Meanwhile, a chorus of Federal Reserve officials Tuesday emphasized the need for more evidence of cooling inflation before lowering interest rates, with a couple policymakers offering insight into the potential timing of such a move. Read More

Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) is gaining momentum in the top tier of Trump’s potential running mates. The next-generation populist leader is perhaps more closely aligned with the former president than any other candidate on Trump’s vice presidential shortlist.

Nominating Vance would be a break from the traditional electoral formula of choosing a running mate to provide ideological balance or bolster the candidate with a wary constituency, as was the case when twice-divorced, previously pro-abortion rights Trump chose Mike Pence in 2016 to boost his credibility with evangelicals.

Trump has turned his VP selection into a public contest, with North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum, Florida Senator Marco Rubio, and South Carolina Senator Tim Scott also among those vying to be his running mate. Read More

BIDEN’S SCHEDULE

• The president has no public events scheduled.

CONGRESS’ AGENDA

• The Senate meets at 10 a.m. to vote to cut off debate on a judicial nomination.
• For the full agenda, read BGOV’s Congress Tracker.

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To contact the reporters on this story: Brandon Lee in Washington at blee@bgov.com; Jeannie Baumann in Washington at jbaumann@bloombergindustry.com

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Kayla Sharpe at ksharpe@bloombergindustry.com