Donald Trump Calls Fed Chairman Jerome Powell 'A Fool I Like Very Much'

President Trump criticized Fed Chairman Jerome Powell, announced new tariff policies, and praised the trade agreement with the United Kingdom. Washington, D.C. – Last Thursday, President Donald Trump continued to publicly criticize Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, this time directly from the White House. In a post on the social media platform Truth Social, Trump wrote: “‘Too late’ Jerome Powell is a FOOL, knows nothing at all. Other than that, I really like him!” This criticism came just under 24 hours after the Fed announced it would hold interest rates steady for the third consecutive time, despite growing pressure from the White House. President Trump continues to make false claims, including that oil and energy prices have fallen, egg and grocery prices are down, while he emphasizes that America is experiencing “virtually NO INFLATION.” He also proudly states that tariff money is “pouring into America — COMPLETELY THE OPPOSITE of what is called ‘too late!’” New Tax Policy: 10% is the Minimum Level In addition to the attacks aimed at the Fed, Mr. Trump also announced a new trade policy that drew significant attention. Speaking in the Oval Office, he stated that the lowest import tariff for countries wishing to sign trade agreements with the U.S. would be set at 10%. “Some countries will have to pay higher rates because they have a large trade surplus with us and, in many cases, have not treated the U.S. fairly,” he said. On this occasion, Mr. Trump also officially announced a new trade agreement with the United Kingdom, stating that Britain has “always respected the US” and deserves a 10% tariff. “That’s a low number because they negotiated well,” he emphasized. However, he also denied that this tariff would become a standard for future trade agreements, asserting: “No, no.” The U.S. President stated that the final terms of the agreement with the UK are still being finalized, but he declared that the deal will bring “billions of dollars in new market access value for U.S. exports.” Additionally, the UK side has also agreed to reduce or eliminate some non-tariff barriers that have previously caused difficulties for U.S. goods. Tariff Chart and Reactions from Both Sides During the announcement, a chart shared on Mr. Trump’s Truth Social account showed that the U.S. tax on British goods would remain at 10%, while the British tax on American goods would be reduced to between 5.1% and 1.8%, although there was no specific explanation on how these figures were calculated.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer participated in a remote announcement and stated, “We have built a great foundation for the future.” However, the reaction in Washington has been somewhat more cautious. Josh Lipsky, an international economics expert at the Atlantic Council, stated on CNBC that this agreement is merely “a small victory, and its scope is very limited.” He argued that such agreements are difficult to implement with countries that have large trade deficits with the U.S. On the part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Secretary Brooke Rollins stated that she will travel to the UK next week to continue negotiations to expand U.S. beef exports to this market under the new agreement. Meanwhile, the British Prime Minister’s Office at 10 Downing Street also issued a statement, asserting that “negotiations between the two countries are ongoing urgently and the Prime Minister will provide updates today.” The statement also emphasized that Mr. Starmer “always acts in the national interest of the UK” and referred to the US as “an indispensable ally in both security and economy.”