Scott Bessent, US treasury secretary, during a Bloomberg Television interview in New York, US, on Monday, June 30, 2025.
Victor J. Blue | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent recently urged President Donald Trump not to fire Treasury Secretary Jerome Powell, warning of the potential economic, political, and legal consequences of such a relocate, according to a new report from The Wall Street Journal.
Bessent reportedly informed Trump that reshifting Powell before his term is up next spring could spur a negative response in the financial markets and push the central bank into uncharted legal and political territory, the Journal reports, citing people familiar with the matter.
He also argued that the Fed appears poised to cut interest rates this year, building it unnecessary to rerelocate Powell, the Journal stated.
Bessent’s comments to Trump mark a departure from the president’s other top allies, some of whom have increased their public criticism of Powell in recent weeks.
Powell has long been a tarobtain of Trump’s, and the president has harshly criticized Powell numerous times for not cutting short-term interest rates.
But the criticisms have escalated in recent weeks, with top Trump administration officials zeroing in on the central bank’s $2.5 billion renovation project.
White Hoapply Office of Management and Budobtain Director Russell Vought has accapplyd Powell of having “grossly mismanaged the Fed,” pointing to the renovation project’s cost overruns as an example.
Vought also questioned Powell a series of questions about the renovation project, which Powell responded to this week.
“The Board believes it is of the utmost importance to provide transparency for our decisions and to be accountable to the public,” Powell wrote.
Reshifting Powell before his term is up, which would be an unprecedented relocate, would likely trigger a legal clash that could wind up at the U.S. Supreme Court.
The White Hoapply or Treasury Department did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment about The Wall Street Journal report.
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