Trump's Pressure Campaign on the Fed Casts Shadow Over Jackson Hole Gathering

President's attempts to control monetary policy was a dominant, yet unspoken theme

- Nick Timiraos

Central bankers debated artificial intelligence, demographics and interest rates during their annual conference here this weekend. But institutional survival became the unmistakable and pervasive undercurrent at what is normally a staid academic gathering.

On Friday, the first full day of the conference, President Trump escalated a brazen and relentless campaign to remake the Federal Reserve, when he said he was considering firing governor Lisa Cook over mortgage-fraud allegations made by a Trump administration housing official.

For months, Trump and his confidants have been lambasting Fed Chair Jerome Powell for not lowering rates at the speed they would like to see, calling him either incompetent or politically motivated—or both.

The attacks all fit within a broader effort by Trump and his allies to make life so uncomfortable for Fed officials—first Powell, and now Cook—that they cave or quit, clearing the way to get the lower rates Trump craves or to install more loyalists who will deliver.

"This should be seen for what it is: a blatant shakedown and an attempt to strong-arm policymakers into lowering rates," said Tim Mahedy, a former senior adviser at the San Francisco Fed who runs an economic consulting firm in San Diego.

The campaign against Cook, who is the first Black woman to serve on the Fed's board, took an ugly turn on Friday night. An image posted on the president's social-media account included the portraits of the Fed's board of governors and Stephen Miran, Trump's pick for an empty seat on the board. In the center was a larger photo purporting to be Cook. It displayed a red X over the photo and labeled Cook as "The Fraudster." A post on Saturday included a photo labeled as Cook's Michigan home.