Trump Blasts Fed Board Over 3.5%-3.75% Rates as He Praises Warsh

3 articles · Updated · Quartz · Aug 20

Trump said Fed governors are keeping borrowing costs high for political reasons, while calling Chairman Kevin Warsh "great" and directing his criticism at the board instead.
July FOMC minutes released the same day showed many officials thought higher rates might still be needed unless inflation improves, after the committee voted 9-3 to hold rates at 3.5% to 3.75%.
That split came from three regional Fed presidents seeking a quarter-point hike; no Board of Governors members joined the dissent, undercutting Trump's claim that board appointees are voting rates up.
Trump has kept pressing for faster cuts, arguing cheaper credit would support growth and lower financing costs on nearly $40 trillion in US debt, even as second-quarter GDP slowed to a 1.5% annualized pace.