President Trump said Monday he is considering a lawsuit against Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell for “incompetence.”
“We’re thinking about bringing … what’s called a ’gross incompetence’ lawsuit,” Mr. Trump said while speaking to the press with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at Mar-a-Lago in Florida.
The lawsuit would stem from costly renovations being made to the Federal Reserve headquarters in Washington.
The renovation project is over budget; it was originally said to be $1.9 billion but has ballooned to $2.5 billion.
The Fed has said the cost increases were due to design changes, increases in the cost of materials, equipment, and labor, and “unforeseen conditions” such as more asbestos than anticipated and toxic contamination in the soil.
Asked if he would ask Mr. Powell to resign, Mr. Trump said he should resign, but he won’t fire him because “we’re so close.”
Mr. Powell was nominated by Mr. Trump in 2017 and was appointed to another four years by President Biden in 2022. His current term ends in May.
The president has repeatedly criticized Mr. Powell for being too slow to lower interest rates.
