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Telegraph
21 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Trump calls for Fed board member to quit in fresh attack on central bank
Donald Trump has demanded a Federal Reserve governor resign over fraud allegations in a fresh attack on the independence of America's central bank. On Wednesday, Mr Trump called on Fed member Lisa Cook to quit after claims from Bill Pulte, the federal housing finance agency chief and a key Trump ally, that Ms Cook had committed mortgage fraud. Mr Pulte, a leading critic of the Fed and its chairman Jerome Powell, said he had sent a criminal referral letter to Pam Bondi, the attorney general, demanding an investigation into allegations that Ms Cook falsified documents and claimed two properties as her primary residence. In response, Mr Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social: 'Cook must resign, now!!!' Mr Pulte, who is in charge of America's mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, is a staunch Trump supporter who has become one of Mr Powell's loudest and most aggressive critics. Mr Pulte has written dozens of posts on X criticising Mr Powell's decision to hold interest rates, claiming the Fed's renovation was 'riddled with fraud' and accusing Mr Powell of 'conducting economic warfare against America'. The president's demand is the latest attack on Fed independence after Mr Trump spent months hurling criticism at Mr Powell for keeping interest rates high. The president has repeatedly called Mr Powell a 'numbskull' and 'Mr Too Late' for failing to cut rates and has several times threatened to oust him. Mr Trump's attacks have triggered widespread warnings over the Fed's ability to operate independently from government interference and jitters in the bond market. Ms Cook, who was appointed by former president Joe Biden, has so far voted in line with Mr Powell to keep interest rates on hold at every federal open market committee (FOMC) meeting since December. Her potential departure from the board would open up another opportunity for Mr Trump to appoint an ally who would favour interest rate cuts. Dissent against Mr Powell is rising at the Fed. The last FOMC meeting at the end of July saw two board members – Christopher Waller and Michelle Bowman – vote for an interest rate cut. Both Mr Waller and Ms Bowman are in the running for Mr Trump's pick to replace Mr Powell, whose term as chairman expires in May. This month, Mr Trump nominated Stephen Miran, the chairman of his council of economic advisors, as a temporary board member to replace Adriana Kugler, who announced she was stepping down before her term was due to expire in January. Mr Miran's nomination needs to be approved by the Senate, but it is feasible that he could be in place in time for the Fed's next interest rate decision on Sept 17. Investors are betting that Mr Powell and the rest of the FOMC will favour a September cut after surprisingly bad jobs data suggested that the American economy is weaker than previously thought. Mr Trump and Scott Bessent, the treasury secretary, are in the process of choosing a permanent replacement for Ms Kugler on the board and become Mr Powell's replacement as chairman.
Reuters
21 minutes ago
- Reuters
Exclusive: Brazil judge targeted by US sanctions confident of Trump reversal
BRASILIA, Aug 20 (Reuters) - The judge at the center of escalating tensions between Brazil and the United States told Reuters he is counting on a change of heart from President Donald Trump to unwind sanctions against him, which he said lack consensus within the U.S. government. Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes has ratcheted up restraining orders against former President Jair Bolsonaro during his trial for an alleged 2022 coup plot. Trump demanded an end to the case that he calls a "witch hunt" as he slapped a 50% tariff on Brazilian goods and hit Moraes with financial sanctions that are putting Brazil's banks on edge. Despite fears of a spiraling crisis for bilateral relations, the judge expressed confidence in a late Tuesday interview at his Brasilia office that sanctions would be unwound against him via diplomatic channels or an eventual challenge in U.S. courts. "A judicial challenge is possible and I have not yet found a U.S. or Brazilian lawyer or scholar who doubts the courts would overturn. But at this moment, I've chosen to wait. That's my choice. It's a diplomatic matter for the country," said Moraes. The standoff with Trump is the highest-profile test yet for the 56-year-old jurist, whose bald visage and muscular frame have come to define the Brazilian high court he joined eight years ago. He has taken the lead on many of the court's most prominent cases, cowing Elon Musk in a showdown over his social media platform, sending hundreds of right-wing rioters in the capital to prison and barring Bolsonaro from running for office. Navigating the U.S. crackdown on his personal finances and bilateral trade with Brazil has done little to change his routine, he said, which includes boxing, martial arts and a new favorite book: Henry Kissinger's "Leadership," the late U.S. diplomat's final volume on 20th century statecraft. Moraes said he trusts diplomacy will restore his standing in Washington. He said prosecutors blamed the current fallout on a campaign by allies of Bolsonaro, including the former president's lawmaker son Eduardo, who is in the U.S. and under investigation in Brazil for courting Trump's intervention in his father's case. "Once the correct information has been passed along, as is being done now, and the documented information reaches the U.S. authorities, I believe it won't even require any legal action to reverse (the sanctions). I believe that the U.S. executive branch itself, the president, will reverse them," Moraes said. Pressed on the reason for that confidence, Moraes said he was aware of internal divisions in the U.S. government that had slowed the sanctions and could still undermine them. "There was reluctance in the State Department and great reluctance in the Treasury Department," he said, without elaborating or explaining how he received that information. A State Department official with knowledge of the matter told Reuters separately that the sanctions against Moraes had faced substantial pushback from career officials. The actions against Moraes were "completely, legally inappropriate," said the source on condition of anonymity, adding that officials from the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control had initially said no but were overruled. A Treasury spokesperson said: "The Treasury Department and Office of Foreign Assets Control, along with the entire Trump administration, is in lockstep that Alexandre de Moraes has engaged in serious human rights abuse. Rather than concocting a fantasy fiction, de Moraes should stop carrying out arbitrary detentions and politicized prosecutions." The U.S. State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Brazilian courts could punish Brazilian financial institutions for seizing or blocking domestic assets in response to U.S. orders, Moraes also said in the interview.
Reuters
an hour ago
- Reuters
Solar may account for half of new US electricity added this year, EIA says
NEW YORK, Aug 20 (Reuters) - Developers are on track to add 33 gigawatts of solar power in the U.S. this year, accounting for about half of the total new electricity generating capacity planned for the country in 2025, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday. If the plans are realized, large-scale solar power additions in the U.S. would reach a record high, said the EIA, which based its analysis on a survey of developers. New battery storage, which stores electricity from solar farms and other energy sources, may also hit a yearly record in 2025. Wind and natural gas power plants accounted for the rest of the capacity additions, the EIA said. Solar energy does not produce global warming emissions. That makes it central to plans by U.S. states to decarbonize, while also meeting record-high electricity demand brought on by Big Tech and other expanding industries. Many of the federal government financial incentives that propelled the development of solar power over the last several years, however, will disappear under the administration of President Donald Trump, adding uncertainty to future development of the technology. Texas, which last year surpassed California as the state with the most large-scale solar capacity, accounted for more than a quarter of the solar power developed so far in 2025. For the rest of the year, the Lone Star State plans for another 9.7 gigawatts of new solar capacity, or nearly half of all of U.S. solar planned for development over the time period. Texas' sunny weather, availability of large amounts of land and quickly-increasing power demand have drawn solar energy development.
