America’s souring economic mood comes at a time when the US economy has shown early signs of slowing, but also of stubbornly elevated inflation — a toxic combination sometimes referred to as stagflation. Fed officials are now waiting to see if that twin threat materializes and some have already started to lay out how the central bank should respond if it does. In 1989, President George H. W. Bush appointed General Powell as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The post is the highest military position in the Department of Defense, and Powell was the first African American officer to receive that distinction. General Powell became a national figure during Desert Shield and Desert Storm operations in Iraq.
Fed Chair Powell says he’s not worried about the economy amid Trump’s tariff chaos
The head of America’s central banking system encouraged Princeton University’s 2025 graduates to do “whatever it takes to preserve and strengthen our democracy” in a May 25 commencement speech at the Ivy League university. After his retirement, Powell remained vocal on political topics, openly criticizing the Bush administration on a number of issues. In September 2006, Powell joined moderate Senate Republicans in supporting more rights and better treatment for detainees at the Guantanamo detention facility.
Powell has served under four presidents, both Democrat and Republican.
Moreover, if markets perceive the Fed’s moves as politicized, long-term interest rates would likely stay elevated as investors demand more interest to take on the greater risk of U.S. Legal protections permit removal only “for cause” (inefficiency or malfeasance, not policy disagreements), making it extremely difficult to oust a chair over monetary policy decisions. However, this protection is now potentially threatened by recent Supreme Court cases regarding the president’s ability to dismiss other executive branch officials with similar “for-cause” protections—a case Powell acknowledged he is “monitoring carefully.” Though the large majority of Powell’s time as a public servant was spent in Republican administrations, in his later years Powell supported Democratic presidential candidates. Colin Powell was a top military officer who became the first black US secretary of state, serving under several Republican presidents, including Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush. In 2007, he joined the board of directors of Steve Case’s new company Revolution Health.
Vietnam War
White House economic advisor Kevin Hassett told reporters outside the White House the following day that the president and his team “will continue to study” if there’s a way to fire Powell. Mr. Powell was born in February 1953 in Washington, D.C. He received an AB in politics from Princeton University in 1975 and earned a law degree from Georgetown University in 1979. While at Georgetown, he was editor-in-chief of the Georgetown Law Journal. In recent weeks, Fed officials have said they will keep rates on hold, mostly because of lingering uncertainty over Trump’s tariff policies. Trump, meanwhile, hasn’t provided evidence to back up his claims that Fed officials are not cutting rates as a way to help Democrats. Being an honest public servant will always be a rewarding choice, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Sunday in a speech at a pre-graduation ceremony at Princeton University amid months of unrelenting personal attacks from President Donald Trump.
He heads the committee that sets monetary policy in the U.S., determining interest rates and the use of experimental practices, such as those at the heart of The Power of the Fed. And his public statements can send financial markets dipping or spiking, as investors try to predict what the Fed will do next. Jerome Powell’s journey from a legislative assistant to the Chair of the Federal Reserve showcases his dedication to public service and financial expertise. His leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted his ability to navigate economic crises, ensuring stability and growth. Powell’s bipartisan support, both under Presidents Obama and Trump, underscores his reputation as a consensus builder. His tenure has seen significant interventions, like slashing interest rates and introducing emergency loan programs, which have been crucial in maintaining financial stability.
According to the Federal Reserve Act, a board member can be removed “for cause” by the president, but the act does not state whether the president or Congress can remove a board member from the position of Chair and remain a board member. From 1984 to 1990, Powell worked as a lawyer and investment banker in New York City at Dillon, Read & Co. The U.S. Senate confirmed Powell to his present post as Fed chair on the basis of strong bipartisan votes.
Jerome Powell Reveals His Daily Routine as Head of the Federal Reserve
In October 2008, Powell made headlines again when he announced his endorsement of Barack Obama for president. In 1994, he joined Senator Sam Nunn and former President Carter on a last-minute peacekeeping expedition to Haiti, which resulted in the end of military rule and a peaceful return to elected government in that country. In 1995, he published a best-selling autobiography, My American Journey, which chronicles his life and its influences, the ins and outs of military bureaucracy, and what he learned in his life about personal rules and character. From 1997 to 2000, he was chairman of America’s Promise, a nonprofit organization dedicated to fostering character and competence in young people. Powell and his wife, Alma, now co-chair the organization, which has a presence in more than 500 communities in all 50 states.
Trump was poised to inherit a strong economy. Then things got rocky and he added to the uncertainty
In 1972 Powell launched his political career when he earned a prestigious White House Fellowship under the Nixon administration. He also served as an executive assistant under the Democratic Carter administration in the Energy and Defense Departments. Later, in 1987, he served as national security advisor under President Ronald Reagan.
And in 2018, as the economy boomed, the Powell-led Fed responded by raising interest rates. Investors reacted poorly, causing market declines that infuriated President Trump. A compromise bill raising the debt ceiling eventually passed the Senate and the House by wide margins, despite continued opposition from Tea Party conservatives and some progressive Democrats, CNN reported at the time. Powell’s career in finance also made him the wealthiest Fed chair nominee since 1948, The Washington Post reported in 2017.
- Powell’s story is a testament to his resilience, expertise, and dedication to the nation’s economic well-being.
- In 1979, Jerome Powell earned a clerical job under Judge Ellsworth Van Graafeiland of the ‘United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit’ in New York City.
- In September 2004, he testified before Congress that the intelligence sources he used in his February presentation to the United Nations were “wrong” and it was unlikely that Saddam had any stockpiles of weapons of mass destruction.
- Colin Powell was a top military officer who became the first black US secretary of state, serving under several Republican presidents, including Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush.
While he gravitated toward support roles early in his career, his organizational talent and pragmatic outlook were recognized by those macd histogram who placed him in key government advisory roles. In 1987, Powell became national security adviser, a post he held for the duration of the Reagan administration. While there, he coordinated technical and policy advisers during Reagan’s summit meetings with Soviet President Gorbachev and his conferences to topple the pro-Communist Sandinista government in Nicaragua.
“With little warning, economies around the world came to a hard stop,” Powell said, referring to the pandemic. “The possibility of a long, severe, global depression was staring us in the face. Everyone turned to the pepperstone forex government, and to the Federal Reserve in particular as a key first responder.” The Supreme Court is currently deliberating Humphrey’s Executor v. United States, a case that could potentially grant the President broader authority to dismiss the heads of independent federal agencies for political reasons.
- To advance the case for war with the international community, Powell appeared before the U.N.
- Earlier this month, Trump called Powell a “FOOL, who doesn’t have a clue” after the central bank decided to leave rates unchanged, citing concerns about inflation and unemployment figures potentially rising.
- He proved unable to uncover either wide-spread unnecessary killings, war crimes, or any facts related to My Lai …
- While Congressional allies have since launched task forces to review the Fed, central bank independence is enshrined in the Federal Reserve Act of 1913, which insulates rate decisions from electoral pressures.
- He has decades of experience in the financial industry and in government positions, and has served on the Board since 2012.
Powell’s leadership at the Federal Reserve has been marked by significant economic interventions and policies. However, a year later inflation began to escalate, eventually hitting a 40-year high and forcing the Fed into a series of aggressive interest rate increases. As The Power of the Fed finds, COVID-era quantitative easing has sparked a stock market boom that also boosted the popularity of trading apps. In 1979, Jerome Powell earned a clerical job under Judge Ellsworth Van Graafeiland of the how to start trading stocks in 2021 ‘United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit’ in New York City. In 1981, he joined the international law firm ‘Davis Polk & Wardwell’ as a lawyer and continued working there till 1983. “Without price stability, we cannot achieve the long periods of strong labor market conditions that benefit all Americans,” Powell said in his speech.
As chief military strategist, he developed what became known as the “Powell Doctrine,” an approach to military conflicts that advocates using overwhelming force to maximize success and minimize casualties. He continued as chairman of the Joint Chiefs in the first few months of the Clinton administration. He publicly disagreed with the president on the issue of admitting gays into the military, although he eventually agreed to the “don’t ask, don’t tell” compromise. Following the last review, the Fed outlined a policy that became known as flexible average inflation targeting. The move was a stated intent to allow inflation to run slightly over the central bank’s 2% target for a period of time in the interest of providing full and inclusive employment across the economy, including for race and gender.
“If economic conditions sour just when tariffs are kicking up inflation, then the Fed has a hellishly tough decision to make. For them, there is no greater nightmare than stagflation,” Bernard Bauhmol, chief global economist at The Economic Outlook Group, said in analyst note this week. There was little progress in the final months of 2024, which was a big reason why officials stopped cutting rates in January, after delivering three back-to-back rate cuts last year. The job market’s resilience also meant the Fed could comfortably stop cutting rates. The Fed still isn’t done dealing with inflation, but there might also be some early signs of a slowing economy at the same time. Powell spent much of his life inspiring many with his leadership skills and life experiences.
Appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate for renewable four-year terms, Federal Reserve chairs have autonomy in their decision-making, but report to Congress twice a year in widely covered oversight hearings. Powell was nominated by Trump and began serving as Fed chair in February 2018. During Powell’s time in the military, which lasted until 1993, he also received a number of other notable awards, including the Bronze Star and two Purple Hearts. Powell was born in New York City in 1937 to parents who immigrated from Jamaica.
Mr. Powell also serves as Chairman of the Federal Open Market Committee, the System’s principal monetary policymaking body. Mr. Powell has served as a member of the Board of Governors since taking office on May 25, 2012, to fill an unexpired term. He was reappointed to the Board and sworn in on June 16, 2014, for a term ending January 31, 2028. His father was an attorney who represented steel companies in union talks, and his mother was a mathematician and statistician who worked part time for the Republican National Committee. Like his father, Powell attended Georgetown Preparatory School, the elite Jesuit boarding and day school from which Supreme Court justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh also graduated. Powell received a bachelor’s degree in politics from Princeton University in 1975 and earned a law degree from Georgetown University, where he served as editor of the Georgetown Law Journal, in 1979.
He is the first Fed chair in more than 40 years who did not hold a Ph.D. in economics. William Miller, who was Fed chair under then-President Jimmy Carter from 1978 to 1979 and held degrees in marine engineering and law. Former President Joe Biden chose to renominate him for a second term which is set to expire in May 2026. Still, despite the heat he has faced as a result of his high-profile job, Powell advised graduates not to shy away from public service.