Byron Donalds on potential Powell firing: 'I’m not there yet'

Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) said he is “not there yet” regarding the potential firing of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, after President Trump indicated he was considering it.

He instead called on Congress to enact spending cuts.

“I’m not there yet, but I’ll tell you that the president doesn’t rule anything out,” Donalds said at the Hill Nation Summit on Wednesday in response to a question from The Hill reporter Mychael Schnell about Powell.

“It’s pretty clear the president is frustrated about where short-term interest rates are,” Donalds said.

He added he wanted to see rates lowered but stopped short of joining calls to fire Powell that have been echoed by some congressional Republicans. The White House has mused about the move, although it’s not clear Trump has the legal authority to fire the Fed chair.

“I think the greater issue is Congress being smart with the people’s money,” Donalds added.

Donalds worked in banking and finance prior to coming to Congress. He authored a letter in December with Rep. French Hill (R-Ark.) calling on the Fed to ditch its dual mandate of focusing on balancing unemployment and inflation. The lawmakers argued that the board should focus on inflation.