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Fortune
Fortune
Eleanor Pringle

Trump’s pick for Fed chair isn’t enough to threaten central bank independence, says top economist—especially if Jerome Powell decides to stick around

Jerome Powell Donald Trump Aditya Bhave Adriana Kugler Arthur Burns the White House US Federal Reserve the Oval Office
Federal Reserve Bank Chair Jerome Powell (Credit: Justin Sullivan—Getty Images)

One of the major questions heading into 2026 is how deeply politics will be allowed to seep through the corridors of the Federal Reserve. This year, President Trump and his cabinet have lobbied for rate cuts and changes to monetary policy, which isn’t unheard of.

However, the White House has also taken more extreme measures: threatening to fire Fed Chair Jerome Powell while insulting him personally; attempting to remove other members of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC); and visiting the central bank’s head office amid a tussle over renovation costs.

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