Trump angrily denounced Powell, saying he wanted to fire him right now but was dissuaded.

Xiao Yanyan, Jinshi Data

US President Trump said on Tuesday that he wants to replace Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell "right now," but "people around him are blocking him." When asked about his plans to nominate a new Fed chairman, Trump blamed Powell for mishandling interest rate policy and frankly stated his desire to replace him immediately.

"I'd love to get that guy out of here right now, but there are always people blocking me," Trump said before meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the White House.

When discussing his 2017 nomination of the central bank's chairman, he bluntly criticized him: "This guy is an idiot, utterly stupid." Powell's term as Federal Reserve Chairman will expire next May, and Trump is expected to announce his successor before the end of this year. Under federal law, Powell and other members of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors are protected by law and cannot be dismissed unless there are sufficient "justifiable reasons." Judicial practice typically defines "justifiable reasons" as serious misconduct or gross negligence, rather than policy differences or personal grudges as Trump has expressed. Experts warn that given the special role the United States and the Federal Reserve play in maintaining the stability of the global financial system, forcibly removing Powell could trigger market panic. Despite this, Trump has threatened to dismiss him dozens of times during his two terms in the White House. Trump revealed on Tuesday that he may have made a personnel decision, though he prefers Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to succeed him. "I do favor him, but he's unwilling to take the job," Trump said of Bessent. "You'd rather stay at the Treasury, right?" The Treasury Secretary immediately responded, "Yes, sir." Bessent promised Trump that he would interview the final candidates for the Federal Reserve position within weeks. It was revealed that Trump is choosing from five finalists: Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman, Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller, former Federal Reserve Governor Kevin Warsh, White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett, and BlackRock's Chief Investment Officer for Fixed Income, Rick Rieder. Trump commented, "The list includes some unexpected names, as well as some well-deserved ones. It's fine to occasionally follow political correctness, but we must ensure the candidates are good enough."