It’s always nice to hear that one’s job is safe “at the present time” and that the man who gave it to you is currently making “no effort” to change that, even though he (and he alone) believes he totally could. Whether he was six months ago notwithstanding, Larry Kudlow assures Jay Powell that he’s not going anywhere, which—given Kudlow’s status as a counter-indicator and the administration’s steadfastness in decisions taken—cannot be very reassuring.
Especially not given Powell’s recent combativeness combined with rumblings of disapproval from Capitol Hill, all of which seem to be positively daring to make “Jay Powell is safe” as short-lived as “fuck it, just print the damned things without the citizenship question.”
“It would be a very bad idea,” said Sen. Pat Toomey (R., Pa.). “The chairman has done an outstanding job.”/“Donald Trump is too smart to do something like that,” said Sen. John Kennedy (R., La.). “I’ve got a lot of confidence in Powell, and he’s done a damn good job.”/“I think the Senate, even the Republican Senate, would not be quiet about that,” said Sen. Richard Shelby (R., Ala.). “The Federal Reserve—this is important—was set up to be independent as much as you can from politics. I would hope no one would really try to politicize the Fed.”
And I would hope that those senators might actually stand up to the president, but I think we all know the ship has sailed on that, too.
Fed Chair Powell’s job is safe ‘at the present time,’ Larry Kudlow says [CNBC]
Fed Chairman Jerome Powell’s Approach to Interest-Rate Policy Wins Bipartisan Backing [WSJ]