Jerome Powell's central bank can't get a break from criticism, despite doing what every single Fed Chair should do - set interest rates based on what's best for the economy, not just following the whims of the President.
But Trump is alone in being called out for his brazen attempts to influence rate-setting at the Fed. Meanwhile, economists like Greenspan, Bernanke, Yellen, and even Powell have all been guilty of the same thing - trying to micromanage the economy from their perch behind the FOMC table.
The problem isn't that Trump thinks he can set a price for credit; it's that no one expects central planners to get it right. And yet, when they try, we're quick to praise them as heroes. Take Powell, for example, who responded to Trump by saying that setting interest rates is about following the best assessment of what will serve the public, not just what the President wants.
But where's the outrage from economists like Thomas Friedman, who are now singing Powell's praises? Didn't they know that Powell was nominated with a clear understanding of who Trump was and what he wanted from him?
The reason none of this matters is because it's all just theoretical - until it's not. Take credit card price controls as an example: we've seen how well those work out in practice. And the truth is, the same principle applies to the Fed's rate-setting. Markets always have their say, and trying to control them through policy is doomed to fail.
So while Powell may be getting a pass for standing up to Trump, he's not doing anything particularly unusual or bold. It's just basic economics 101 - follow the data, not just what your boss wants you to do. And yet, it seems like no one expects much from economists, except to praise them when they're right and criticize them when they're wrong.
It's a double standard that reflects our broader failure to understand how markets really work. So, let's give Powell credit where credit is due - but also hold him (and the rest of us) accountable for trying to do what we think is best for the economy, even if it means disagreeing with the President from time to time.
But Trump is alone in being called out for his brazen attempts to influence rate-setting at the Fed. Meanwhile, economists like Greenspan, Bernanke, Yellen, and even Powell have all been guilty of the same thing - trying to micromanage the economy from their perch behind the FOMC table.
The problem isn't that Trump thinks he can set a price for credit; it's that no one expects central planners to get it right. And yet, when they try, we're quick to praise them as heroes. Take Powell, for example, who responded to Trump by saying that setting interest rates is about following the best assessment of what will serve the public, not just what the President wants.
But where's the outrage from economists like Thomas Friedman, who are now singing Powell's praises? Didn't they know that Powell was nominated with a clear understanding of who Trump was and what he wanted from him?
The reason none of this matters is because it's all just theoretical - until it's not. Take credit card price controls as an example: we've seen how well those work out in practice. And the truth is, the same principle applies to the Fed's rate-setting. Markets always have their say, and trying to control them through policy is doomed to fail.
So while Powell may be getting a pass for standing up to Trump, he's not doing anything particularly unusual or bold. It's just basic economics 101 - follow the data, not just what your boss wants you to do. And yet, it seems like no one expects much from economists, except to praise them when they're right and criticize them when they're wrong.
It's a double standard that reflects our broader failure to understand how markets really work. So, let's give Powell credit where credit is due - but also hold him (and the rest of us) accountable for trying to do what we think is best for the economy, even if it means disagreeing with the President from time to time.
but its not like Powell did something revolutionary or unexpected 
. He just followed the data and tried to do what's best for the economy, which is kinda basic economics 101 
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like if Thomas Friedman is praising Powell's moves then where was he when they were nominated? 
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. same principle applies to the Fed's rate-setting, markets always have their say and trying to control them is doomed to fail 
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instead of just praising economists when they're right or criticizing them when they're wrong 
. Powell gets credit for standing up to Trump but lets also hold him accountable for trying to do what's best for the economy even if its unpopular 
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. Meanwhile, credit card price controls have been a total disaster in practice, so why should we think rate-setting will be any different? 
. We need to stop playing favorites with economists and just appreciate the hard work they do to keep our economy from going crazy 
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. But you're right, Trump is acting like he's above the law or something 
. It's time to hold ourselves accountable and stop being so passive-aggressive 
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... Markets are unpredictable, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't try to understand how they work 
. We should all be doing the same thing - looking out for what's best for the economy, even if it means going against the President 
.
. And can we please just have a conversation about why credit card price controls are a bad idea instead of just pretending like they're a good idea? 
and I'm like totally distracted now... Anyway, back to interest rates and stuff... what's up with economists always being surprised when their predictions don't pan out? Like, come on guys, you knew the market was gonna do its thing all along. It's like predicting when someone's gonna say "oops" at a party 
. And can we talk about how boring it is when everyone agrees on something? I mean, where's the excitement in that? Can't we have some controversy for once? 
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