Jerome Powell is 'torturing America' with interest rates, says US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick

The Trump Administration is showing no sign that it will lessen its criticism of Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell, with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick saying that the Fed chairman was torturing the US.

On CBS Face the Nation, Mr Lutnick echoed US President Donald Trump's sharp tone when talking about the Federal Reserve chairman, saying that he was doing the “worst job”, among other things.

“I don't know why he's torturing America this way,” he said, referring to Mr Powell's decision to not cut interest rates.

CBS anchor Margaret Brennan pointed out to Mr Lutnick that Mr Powell does not unilaterally set the interest rates, but rather, a committee consisting of federal governors and the heads of central bank offices throughout the US.

Later in the show, Democratic Congressman Jim Himes condemned Mr Lutnick for his choice of words.

“He said, 'Jay Powell is torturing the American people',” lamented Mr Himes, saying that Mr Lutnick was putting Mr Powell's physical safety at risk.

“What you just saw was a masterclass by a huckster and a con man who uses words like torture that are very, very dangerous words,” he continued.

Mr Lutnick's decision to use words like “torture” when referring to the US Federal Reserve chairman are the latest in a series of condemnations of Mr Powell from the Trump White House.

It also comes after Mr Trump's own comments on Tuesday, when he denied reports that he intends to fire Mr Powell, a move that is largely unprecedented and would likely rock the markets.

“I talked about the concept of firing him. I said, 'what do you think?' Almost every one of them said I should, but I'm more conservative,” he said before a meeting with Bahrain’s Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa.

When asked if he would rule out the idea, Mr Trump said: “I don't rule out anything but I think it's highly unlikely unless he has to leave for fraud.”

That same day, Mr Trump continued to insist the Fed's current target rate of 4.25 per cent to 4.50 per cent should be three points lower.

During his appearance on Face The Nation, Mr Lutnick said he was angry that the US “had the same interest rates as Gabon,” and echoed Mr Trump's call for lower rates.

“Whether [President Trump] decides to let Jerome Powell stay on the job or not, I'll leave that to Donald Trump,” Mr Lutnick explained, while addressing speculation that Mr Trump might fire Mr Powell.

Under the Federal Reserve Act, a president can remove a Federal Reserve official only “for cause”. This means the White House must show a Fed official or its chairperson had committed an act of malfeasance or neglect of duty. A recent Supreme Court ruling upheld the notion that legal reasoning the White House has been used to fire officials at other independent federal agencies does not apply to the Fed.

But the White House in recent weeks has launched a new phase of attack on the Federal Reserve, accusing Mr Powell of mismanaging the central bank given the ballooning renovation costs of its headquarters.

Asked if Mr Powell should be investigated, Mr Trump said: “Well, I think he's already under investigation. He spent far more money than he was supposed to rebuilding.”

Mr Powell's term as Fed chairman expires next May.

Reports in recent days had suggested that Mr Powell had managed to convince Mr Trump to lessen his threats to remove the Fed chairman before his term expires.

While addressing those reports on Sunday, Mr Lutnick instead boasted of what described as Mr Trump's transparency.

“When he thinks something he says it,” Mr Lutnick added.

The US Federal Reserve Board has not yet responded to the The National's requests for comment on this story.

Kyle Fitzgerald contributed to this report.

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