Let's talk about Trump obeying Thune about the Fed.... - Belle of the Ranch

Well, howdy there Internet people. It's Belle again. So, today we're going to talk about Trump obeying Thune about the Fed.

Well, that didn't take long at all. We've talked a few times about Trump's pressure campaign against Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. It was in pursuit of getting Powell to lower interest rates. That pressure campaign eventually led to an investigation into building cost overruns. Republican Senator Thom Tillis sought to defend the independence of the Federal Reserve and put a hold on Trump's nominee.

Federal Reserve Chair Powell indicated he might do the funniest thing in Federal Reserve history and just stay on the Board of Governors even after his term as Chair ends. Trump tried everything to push his pick through, but Senator Tillis wasn't budging. There will be links below if you want to catch up on the story line. Then came the deciding development.

Republican Senate Majority Leader Thune publicly told Trump what was what. He publicly said, "We all agree that Kevin Warsh is a great pick and hopefully will be confirmed. The sooner the administration can wrap up this investigation and get ready to move forward with the new Fed chairman, the better off everybody will be."

In other words, Thune told Trump nobody was caving and that he needed to grab a taco and think about his choices in life. We covered how this was pretty much a public order from Thune to Trump on the 23rd.

On April 24th, US Attorney Pirro posted to social media, "This morning, the Inspector General of the Federal Reserve has been asked to scrutinize the building costs overruns in the billions of dollars that have been borne by taxpayers. The IG has the authority to hold the Federal Reserve accountable to American taxpayers. I expect a comprehensive report in short order, and I'm confident the outcome will assist in resolving once and for all the questions that led this office to issue subpoenas. Accordingly, I have directed my office to close our investigation as the IG undertakes this inquiry. Note well, however, that I will not hesitate to restart a criminal investigation should the facts warrant doing so.”

The thing is that might not be enough. Senator Tillis has been pretty clear that he wants the probe completely and transparently resolved to secure the independence of the Fed. That threat at the end might have derailed the whole thing. Tillis might view that as a continuation of the pressure campaign.

It's worth acknowledging that data has clearly shown that Powell was right and Trump was wrong. If you think inflation is moving up now, just imagine what it would be with lower interest rates.

The pressure campaign was pointless. And if it had been successful, Trump would have hurt the economy more than he already has.

Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts might be setting up a push to stop Trump from getting his nominee through. She said, "This is just an attempt to clear the path for Senate Republicans to install President Trump's sock puppet Kevin Warsh as Fed Chair. Anyone who believes Donald Trump's corrupt scheme to take over the Fed is over is fooling themselves. The Senate should not proceed with the nomination of Kevin Warsh.”

We'll need a few more days for the smoke to clear before we check back in because there's still at least one more funny development on the way. And it's unclear how Tillis, Powell, and Thune will read Trump's continued pressure.

Anyway, it's just a thought. Y'all have a good day.