“When a frustrated Donald Trump flirted with removing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell in a dispute over interest rates back in 2018, Fed leaders privately readied a break-glass-in-case-of-emergency response: a legal challenge against the president to protect the integrity of America’s central bank,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“Powell told then-Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin that he would fight his removal if sought by the president… For Powell, the unsavory prospect of a legal showdown—one he might have to pay for out of his own pocket—was imperative to preserve the ability of future Fed chairs to serve without the threat of being removed over a policy dispute.”
“Six years later, Trump is heading back to the White House and the dormant drama of his fraught relationship with Powell is back on display. When asked last week whether he would resign if asked to do so, Powell offered a one-word reply: ‘No.’ He gave the same answer when asked if the president had the authority to dismiss him.”
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