On June 24, Fed Chair Jerome Powell will travel to Capitol Hill this week, and he will face increasing pressure from inside and outside the Fed to cut interest rates. The hearing could rewrite the Fed's nearly decade-long tradition of "staying away from politics." At 22:00 on Tuesday, Powell will submit his semi-annual monetary policy report to the House Financial Services Committee before moving to the Senate Banking Committee on Wednesday. While such congressional inquiries typically focus on the economic situation and policy directions, this time the context is very different: not only is Trump and his administration officials pressuring, but there are also key rifts within the Federal Reserve. Fed Governor Bowman and Waller, both of whom were appointed during Trump's first term, have recently expressed their support for a rate cut as early as July, and both have been mentioned as potential candidates to succeed Powell next year. Powell's hearing could be met with a bipartisan blow: Republicans followed Trump's call for an immediate easing of monetary policy, while Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren also called for a rate cut. (Golden Ten)
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Powell is about to engage in a "war of words" on Capitol Hill and may face a bipartisan attack.
On June 24, Fed Chair Jerome Powell will travel to Capitol Hill this week, and he will face increasing pressure from inside and outside the Fed to cut interest rates. The hearing could rewrite the Fed's nearly decade-long tradition of "staying away from politics." At 22:00 on Tuesday, Powell will submit his semi-annual monetary policy report to the House Financial Services Committee before moving to the Senate Banking Committee on Wednesday. While such congressional inquiries typically focus on the economic situation and policy directions, this time the context is very different: not only is Trump and his administration officials pressuring, but there are also key rifts within the Federal Reserve. Fed Governor Bowman and Waller, both of whom were appointed during Trump's first term, have recently expressed their support for a rate cut as early as July, and both have been mentioned as potential candidates to succeed Powell next year. Powell's hearing could be met with a bipartisan blow: Republicans followed Trump's call for an immediate easing of monetary policy, while Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren also called for a rate cut. (Golden Ten)