BURSTPresident Trump on Tuesday threatened to allow a lawsuit against Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell related to renovations of the central bank's headquarters.
Trump provided no details on the nature of the lawsuit or who would bring it, but he blasted Powell in a Truth Social post and blamed his former Treasury secretary, Steven Mnuchin, for suggesting Powell for the role.
"Jerome 'Too Late' Powell must NOW lower the rate. Steve 'Manouychin' really gave me a 'beauty' when he pushed this loser. The damage he has done by always being Too Late is incalculable," Trump posted.
"Fortunately, the economy is sooo good that we’ve blown through Powell and the complacent Board," he added. "I am, though, considering allowing a major lawsuit against Powell to proceed because of the horrible, and grossly incompetent, job he has done in managing the construction of the Fed Buildings."
Trump has resumed his attacks on Powell, whom he first nominated to the role in 2017, after the two men had a fairly cordial meeting during a tour of the Federal Reserve's headquarters in July to review ongoing upgrades.
The president has for months complained the Federal Reserve has not moved to lower interest rates, which Powell has attributed to uncertainty caused by Trump's tariff policies.
Top White House officials have zeroed in on a $2.5 billion renovation of the Fed’s headquarters, pointing to cost overruns and questions about whether Powell ran afoul of regulations.
Powell has asked the inspector general of the central bank to review the renovations, and the Fed has posted an explainer to its website detailing why the project has faced increased costs.