Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Thursday that he would not resign if president-elect Donald Trump asked him to.
Asked whether he would step down amid chatter that Trump's advisers had suggested he do so, Powell replied, "No."
Trump nominated Powell as Fed chairman in 2017 in his first administration.
Powell also said that he was not legally required to leave if asked to do so, and that his staff had determined that the president lacked the capacity under the law to demote, at will, him or any other Fed governors.
Powell's term is scheduled to end in May 2026.
Powell made the comments during his regularly scheduled remarks following the release of the Federal Open Market Committee's latest statement on interest rate policy. The committee announced a quarter-point cut, a widely expected move.
Representatives for Trump did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Powell's comments are likely to be seen as a bid to maintain the Fed's long-standing independence from outside political influence, though whether such immunity actually exists in practice has sometimes been debated.
Still, Powell, who views himself as a public servant, appears to be readying himself for a potential clash with the incoming president, who recently said that while he would not directly influence Fed decision-making, he should at least be able to offer input.
“I think I have the right to say I think you should go up or down a little bit,” Trump said in a Bloomberg News interview at the Chicago Economic Club last month, according to Reuters. “I don’t think I should be allowed to order it, but I think I have the right to put in comments as to whether or not the interest rates should go up or down.”
Earlier Thursday, CNN reported that Trump remains likely to allow Powell to serve out the rest of his term, citing sources familiar with the matter. NBC News has not confirmed those remarks.
In remarks Wednesday on CNBC, Scott Bessent, a top Trump fundraiser, said Trump planned to name Powell's successor "very early" into his new administration and pointed to former Fed governor Kevin Warsh as a top choice.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
