Trump steps up pressure on Powell with handwritten note

President Donald Trump stepped up his pressure on the Federal Reserve to lower borrowing costs Monday, accusing its chair, Jerome Powell, in a handwritten note of costing the country "a fortune" and demanding that he cut interest rates "by a lot.

- COLBY SMITH

In a separate social media post Monday, Trump said Mr Powell and his colleagues on the Fed’s Board of Governors, who vote on every monetary policy decision, “should be ashamed of themselves for allowing this to happen to the United States.”

“If they were doing their job properly, our Country would be saving Trillions of Dollars in Interest Cost,” Trump wrote.

“The Board just sits there and watches, so they are equally to blame.”

The criticism is the latest in months of attacks in which Trump has insulted Mr Powell directly and has even threatened to fire him as chair.

On Friday, the president encouraged Mr Powell to resign before his term as chair is up in May. Mr Powell can stay on as a governor until 2028 if he chooses.

Trump has also floated naming a replacement for Mr Powell long before his term expires, a move that could complicate communications for the Fed.