The Fed must maintain its independence: Kevin Hasset

Reuters

La Jornada Newspaper, Monday, September 8, 2025, p. 23

Washington. Kevin Hasset, director of the White House National Economic Council and on President Donald Trump's shortlist to be the next Federal Reserve (Fed) chairman, said yesterday that the central bank must be "totally independent of political influence, including President Trump's," he told CBS News.

"We've seen countries that have allowed leaders to take over central banks, and that tends to be a recipe for inflation and misery for consumers," he added.

Trump's demands that the Fed lower rates and his rebukes of Fed chairman Jerome Powell (whose term ends in May 2026) for his handling of monetary policy have fueled doubts about the central bank's ability to set monetary policy without regard for the wishes of politicians.