Vance, Republican vice-presidential nominee, backs ‘political’ decision-making on Fed policies By Reuters

By Richard Cowan

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Republican vice presidential nominee JD (NASDAQ: ) Vance said on Sunday he supported Donald Trump’s call for presidents to have a say in Federal Reserve Board policymaking, including interest rate moves, saying they should be “political”. “decisions.

Vance’s remarks during an interview on CNN’s “State of the Union” program came after Trump told reporters Thursday, “I feel like the president should at least have (a) say there.”

Explaining Trump’s position, Vance said the former president believes the political leadership in the United States should have more say over the country’s monetary policy.

As the president appoints members of the Federal Reserve Board, previous administrations have largely argued that White House meddling in the Fed’s monetary decisions would inject short-term political pressures that could end up hurting the U.S. economy in the long run.

Still, that hasn’t stopped presidents in the past from occasionally grumbling about the Fed’s stances.

“I agree with him (Trump). This should essentially be a political decision. Agree or disagree, we should have America’s elected leaders contribute to the most important decisions facing our country,” he said. Vance said.

Vance said it would be “a huge shift” to move away from a long-standing position that the Fed should be an independent monetary policymaking institution.

During last week’s press conference in Florida, Trump boasted: “I think in my case, I’ve made a lot of money, I’ve been very successful, and I think I have a better instinct than in a lot of cases, people who would be it on the Federal Reserve or the president”.

Trump failed to mention that several times throughout his business career, his businesses defaulted on interest and filed for bankruptcy.

Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris said Saturday that she strongly disagrees with Trump’s views on the Fed.

“The Fed is an independent entity, and as chairman I would never interfere in the decisions that the Fed makes,” Harris told reporters in Phoenix, Arizona.

In March 2022, the Fed began raising interest rates in an effort to tame rising inflation as the United States recovered from the economic shocks of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Interest rates set by the central bank can have a direct impact on borrowing costs, from home mortgages to credit cards.

Wall Street investors had been expecting the Fed to take the first step next month to reverse that course as inflation cools.

In June of this year, the inflation rate was 2.5% by the Fed’s preferred measure, approaching the 2% target after reaching 7.1% in June 2022. Other measures of inflation rose, but I also show signs of relaxation.

The Trump-Vance comments come on the heels of a “2025 Presidential Transition Project,” a controversial agenda pushed by some conservatives that recommends sweeping changes across the federal government if Trump wins the Nov. 5 presidential election against Harris.

Among his recommendations were: “Appoint a commission to explore the mission of the Federal Reserve, alternatives to the Federal Reserve system, and the nation’s financial regulatory apparatus,” along with other proposals for the Fed.

As Democrats stepped up their attacks on “Project 2025,” Trump distanced himself from it.