Jerome Powell said the US central bank, like any modern institution, is undergoing a “stress test.”
Published June 1, 2026
Former US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell has warned against the politicization of monetary policy amid President Donald Trump’s repeated attacks on central bank independence.
Chairman Powell said in a speech at an awards ceremony in Boston on Sunday that the Fed, like many other institutions, was undergoing a “stress test” during the Trump era.
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Powell said Congress had “wisely” chosen to shield the central bank from political pressure and said other advanced economies have similar norms that maintain monetary policy independence.
“These protections are good for our people, and administrations of both parties have respected them,” Powell said after receiving the 2026 John F. Kennedy Courage Award.
“If any administration finds a way to fire Fed officials over policy differences, future administrations will do so as well,” Powell said.
“The public will lose confidence that the central bank will make decisions based solely on what’s best for all Americans.”
Powell, who resigned as central bank chief last month, said the Fed’s credibility would be “eroded” in such a scenario.
“That credibility allows the Fed to support a strong and stable economy for the benefit of American families and businesses,” he said.
“Our trust has been built and maintained over decades, and we have a duty to protect that precious asset for our fellow citizens and for generations to come.”
Mr. Powell made the standard decision to remain as one of the seven members of the Fed’s board after stepping down as chairman, but he also vowed to defend democratic institutions more broadly.
“Partisan political differences are normal and indeed essential in a thriving democracy, but we should be united in our commitment to the higher principles that define our nation,” Powell said.
“Foremost among these is respect for the rule of law. As John Adams wrote, our government is ‘a government of laws, not of men.’ Our public institutions move us forward through change. These institutions embody our commitment to freedom, democracy, and service to the common good.”
Powell did not mention Trump by name, but the president has waged a sustained pressure campaign on the central bank for not heeding his calls for deeper interest rate cuts.
Trump repeatedly threatened to fire Powell during his tenure, but Trump-appointed ally Jeanine Pirro launched a brief criminal investigation into Powell’s congressional testimony about ongoing renovations at Fed headquarters.
President Trump also ordered the firing of Federal Reserve Board member Lisa Cook over unproven claims of mortgage fraud, but the Supreme Court ruled that she can remain in office while the US considers a legal challenge to her firing.
Under the Federal Reserve Act, the U.S. president must prove “cause” (widely interpreted to mean misconduct) to remove a Federal Reserve director.
The John F. Kennedy Courage Profile Award was created in 1989 to honor those who have demonstrated courage in public service, regardless of professional or personal consequences.
Previous recipients of the award, named after Kennedy’s Pulitzer Prize-winning book Profiles in Courage, include former U.S. President Barack Obama, then-Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko, and then-United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan.
