Tesla CEO Elon Musk (right) joins former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump during a campaign rally at the site of his first assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, on October 5, 2024.
Jim Watson | AFP | Getty Images
Tesla SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, a billionaire supporter of newly elected President Donald Trump, has supported the idea of allowing presidents to interfere in Federal Reserve policy.
In response to a social media post on Thursday from Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, that called for the Fed to be under the supervision of the president, Musk on Friday posted the “100” emoji used to convey approval.
Senator Lee peppered his post with “#EndtheFed.”
Although Musk's comment is brief, it reflects a broader pressure campaign on the Fed's independence that could take shape in the incoming Trump administration.
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said Thursday that he would not resign from his position if Trump asked him to do so. It was a revival of what could once again develop into a contentious relationship between the Fed chairman and the president-elect.
The Fed's tradition of independence is intended to give the central bank the ability to shape monetary policy decisions – such as raising or lowering interest rates – based solely on the future health of the US economy.
But during his first term in office, Trump has not been shy about breaking with tradition and publicly disparaging Powell and his policy decisions.
Over the course of the 2024 presidential campaign, Trump often toyed with the idea of giving himself a say in Fed policy if he won the White House again.
“I feel like the president should at least have a say there,” Trump said in August at a news conference at his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida. “I think in my case, I've made a lot of money, I've been very successful, and I think I have better instinct than people who would be on the Fed or the chairman of the board in many cases.”
