Trump slammed Powell, saying "he couldn't find another job," and claimed he is clinging to the Fed to block Warsh from taking over.

Powell announced that he would remain on the Fed Board of Governors after his term as Chair ends, stating that the Trump administration's legal actions threaten the independence of the central bank; Trump immediately lashed out on Truth Social, claiming he only wants to stay because he "can't find a job." (Previous coverage: Powell's final press conference: Declares he will "step down but not leave" to defend Fed independence; 4 dissenting votes against easing within the Fed do not signal a rate hike) (Background: Fed keeps interest rates unchanged! FOMC statement cites "surging energy prices and Middle East crisis," 4 dissenting votes against "easing bias" within the Fed) Just as Powell announced he would "step down but not leave," Trump immediately fired back. Fed Chair Jerome Powell stated after the April 29 FOMC meeting that after his term as Chair ends on May 15, he will remain at the Fed as a Governor for an "undetermined period," which effectively denies the Trump administration a vacant board seat to fill in the short term. Trump subsequently posted on Truth Social, criticizing Powell and claiming he wants to stay at the Fed because he cannot find a job elsewhere, adding that "nobody wants him." This has escalated the existing conflict over interest rates, inflation, and central bank independence into an open political confrontation between Trump and Powell. According to AP, Powell stated that the "unprecedented" legal attacks launched by the Trump administration against the Fed are putting the independence of the U.S. central bank at risk. He mentioned at the press conference that these attacks are impacting the Fed as an institution and threatening things that are truly important to the public. Powell's term as Chair will expire on May 15, 2026, but his term as a Fed Governor can extend until January 2028. If he chooses to remain, this would be the first time since 1948 that a Fed Chair has continued to serve on the board as a Governor after stepping down, also meaning Trump cannot immediately appoint his own candidate to the seat. One of the cores of the controversy is the legal investigation stemming from the Fed building renovation project. AP noted that U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro previously stated that the prosecution would end its investigation into the renovation project and defer to the Fed Inspector General for review; however, she reserved the right to reopen the investigation in the future if facts warrant it. Powell stated after the meeting that he is waiting for the investigation to end in a "final and transparent" manner, adding that he would leave when he deems it appropriate. In other words, even if the Chair position is handed over to Trump's nominee Kevin Warsh, Powell intends to remain on the Fed Board until the legal dispute is fully resolved. This also complicates Warsh's succession. According to Axios, Powell's decision to stay will cost Trump a key vacancy and could slow down the speed at which Warsh can build a consensus for rate cuts. Because even if Warsh takes over as Chair, Powell will still sit on the seven-member Board of Governors, continuing to hold voting power and policy influence. AP also described this as potentially creating a situation of "two suns" within the Fed: one being the new Chair, Warsh, and the other being the former Chair, Powell, who has just stepped down but remains on the scene. If some officials continue to follow Powell's policy judgment, the existing clear divisions within the Fed could further widen. Trump did not wait long to retaliate. In his Truth Social post, Trump claimed that Powell wants to stay at the Fed because he cannot find a job elsewhere and no one wants him. Trump also used his past nickname for Powell, "Too Late," implying that his rate cuts were too slow. The political signal of this statement is clear: Trump not only wants to replace the Fed Chair but also wants to weaken Powell's remaining influence on the board. The issue is that Fed Governor terms are fixed precisely to reduce direct White House interference in monetary policy; Powell's choice to remain is effectively using his institutional term to counter political pressure. For the market, the focus of this personnel conflict is not the war of words itself, but whether the path to rate cuts will become more unstable. The Fed kept the benchmark interest rate unchanged in the 3.50% to 3.75% range for the third consecutive time on April 29, but the meeting saw the highest number of dissenting votes since 1992, indicating a clear division among officials over whether to signal easing. If Powell's stay makes it harder for Warsh to build consensus on the board, the rapid rate cuts Trump wants may not come immediately; however, if the White House continues to increase legal and political pressure, it will also be harder for the Fed's policy discussions to remain low-noise.