(Reuters) -President Donald Trump has privately discussed firing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell for months and talked about it with former Fed Governor Kevin Warsh, including the possibility of then selecting Warsh as Powell’s replacement, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday.
Warsh has advised against trying to fire Powell, arguing that Trump should let the Fed chair complete his term without interference, the Journal reported, citing unnamed people familiar with the matter. The report comes the same day that Trump has repeatedly lashed out at Powell, whose term as Fed chair expires in May 2026.
Warsh served as a Fed governor from February 2006 to April 2011. He was appointed by President George W. Bush.
The Journal said the discussions with Warsh took place at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida in February, but others close to the president had discussed the matter as recently as March.
Trump has not made a final decision about whether to try to fire Powell before his term ends, a matter that would likely be challenged all the way to the Supreme Court. The Federal Reserve Act of 1913 stipulates that Fed leaders may only be dismissed “for cause,” and Powell himself has said his firing would not be “permitted under the law.”
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. There was no immediate response to Reuters emails and calls to Warsh for comment.
(Reporting By Dan Burns; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
