President Donald Trump intensified his public attacks on Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Thursday, openly calling for his removal after the central bank declined to cut interest rates as quickly as Trump believes is necessary to support the economy.

The sharp criticism came just one day after Powell issued a warning about the potential economic consequences of the Trump administration’s aggressive trade policies, particularly the broad tariffs recently imposed on foreign goods. Powell cautioned that the scale of the tariffs was larger than policymakers had anticipated and could introduce new risks to economic stability.

In an early-morning post on social media, Trump accused Powell of consistently misjudging economic conditions and lagging behind other global central banks. He contrasted the Federal Reserve’s stance with that of the European Central Bank, which later that same day announced its seventh interest rate reduction within a year.

Trump’s message was blunt and personal. He described Powell’s latest economic assessment as deeply flawed and argued that the Fed chair’s leadership was holding the United States back. Trump added that Powell’s “termination” could not come soon enough, escalating a long-running feud between the president and the nation’s top monetary official.

Powell, who was first appointed as Fed chair by Trump in 2018 and later reappointed by President Joe Biden in 2021, is currently serving a term scheduled to expire in May 2026. Despite repeated threats from Trump over the years, Powell has maintained that the Federal Reserve operates independently and that the law does not permit a president to remove a Fed chair simply over policy disagreements.

The tension between Trump and Powell is not new. Their relationship soured early in Powell’s tenure, particularly in 2018 when the Federal Reserve raised interest rates several times amid concerns that a tight labor market could spark inflation. At the time, Trump publicly accused Powell of undermining economic growth and even labeled him an adversary.

In 2019 and early 2020, as markets reacted sharply to global instability, Trump again suggested he had the authority to remove Powell, criticizing what he viewed as poor decision-making. However, when the Fed rapidly slashed rates to near zero in response to economic shutdowns, Trump praised Powell’s actions as necessary to prevent a deeper crisis.

More recently, Trump has indicated he does not plan to reappoint Powell once his term ends, though he has also suggested he would allow Powell to serve out the remainder of his tenure if the Fed’s policies align more closely with his economic goals.

Powell, for his part, has repeatedly stated that he intends to complete his term and has emphasized that the independence of the central bank is a cornerstone of economic stability.

Beyond the dispute over interest rates, global financial markets are also reacting to renewed uncertainty surrounding Trump’s trade agenda. Over the weekend, the president reignited concerns with a series of statements signaling that temporary tariff exemptions granted to certain electronic products would soon expire.

Administration officials clarified that exemptions announced on Friday for items such as consumer electronics were never intended to be permanent. New tariff rates are expected to be introduced in the coming weeks, particularly targeting products deemed critical to national security.

Trump underscored this message in a post on his Truth Social account, stating that no country or industry would be spared from efforts to address what he described as long-standing trade imbalances. He emphasized that his administration was preparing a broad review of the semiconductor industry and the global electronics supply chain, with the goal of reducing U.S. dependence on foreign manufacturing.

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick reinforced that position during a Sunday appearance on ABC’s “This Week.” When asked whether tariffs on items like smartphones, laptops, and other electronics manufactured abroad would return in a different form, Lutnick confirmed they would.

He explained that the administration is developing tariff frameworks specifically for semiconductors and pharmaceuticals to encourage domestic production. According to Lutnick, rebuilding U.S. manufacturing capacity in these sectors is essential to national security and economic resilience.

The current tariff exemptions were implemented under a 1977 law that allows the president to act during a declared national emergency related to trade deficits. The next phase of tariffs, however, is expected to rely on authority granted under the 1962 Trade Expansion Act, which permits the president to adjust imports that are judged to pose a threat to national security.

As Trump continues to press the Federal Reserve for faster rate cuts while simultaneously expanding tariffs, investors and policymakers alike are bracing for increased volatility. The clash between monetary policy and trade strategy has once again placed the Fed’s independence — and Powell’s future — at the center of the national economic debate.