Trump Says He Would Not Have Supported SVB Bailout, Brands Fed Chair ‘Too Interest Rate Happy’

Former president Donald Trump addresses the annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) at Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center in National Harbor, Md., on March 4, 2023. Alex Wong/Getty Images

Former president Donald Trump has criticized Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell for being “too interest rate happy” while taking aim at the government-aided bailout of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB).

In an interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity that aired on Monday, Trump was asked whether he would have supported the bailout of SVB after it collapsed, referring to the government intervening to ensure that uninsured deposits at the bank are returned to customers.

“I wouldn’t have supported a bailout. The bank would have to get along by itself, and maybe they could have,” Trump said, before citing high interest rates as the reason for the institution’s collapse.

“What happened with the bank is interest rates went too high. And you know, I had my own situation with Powell and I beat the hell out of him,” Trump said. “I was not a big fan of Powell. He was recommended by some people. I didn’t like him, he’s too interest rate happy.”

Powell was initially appointed to the Federal Reserve Board by then-President Barack Obama in 2012 and nominated as chairman by then-President Trump in 2018.

However, the Fed chair has come under fire from multiple experts and lawmakers over his handling of the economy as inflation has soared.

Warren Takes Aim at Powell

Last week, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) accused Powell of trying to put up to two million Americans out of work as part of the central bank’s efforts to bring down inflation.

In an interview on ABC’s “This Week,” the Democrat also accused Powell of taking a “flamethrower” to bank regulations during the Trump administration that were designed to ensure a safer U.S. financial system following the financial crisis of 2008–09.

“And what happened was exactly what we should have predicted, and that is the banks, these big, multibillion-dollar banks, loaded up on risk; they boosted their short-term profits; they gave themselves huge bonuses and big salaries; and they exploded their banks. And so where we stand now is the federal government’s got to step back in and back up these multibillion-dollar banks,” Warren said.

Powell did not respond to The Epoch Times’s request for comment regarding Warren’s remarks.

Trump’s comments come shortly after the central bank voted unanimously to raise interest rates by 25 basis points, increasing the benchmark federal funds rate to a range of 4.75–5.00 percent.

Trump Shares Inflation Plan

While speaking to reporters last Wednesday shortly after the vote, Powell said that the latest events in the banking system would likely “result in tighter credit conditions for households and businesses, which would, in turn, affect economic outcomes”, adding that it was too soon to “determine the extent of these effects” and how the Fed would respond.

The next meeting of the policy-making Federal Open Market Committee is scheduled for May, and experts widely anticipate another raise of 25 basis points.

Also during Monday’s interview, Trump shared his solution to bring down red-hot inflation, stating that the government needs to turn its attention to bringing down oil prices.

He noted that President Joe Biden had implemented various energy policies since taking office, including closing down the Keystone XL pipeline, which was set to carry around 800,000 barrels of oil per day into the United States, and curtailing domestic energy production.

“What you do is you get the oil prices down. That’s bigger than interest rates ... the only thing,” the former president said. “Those banks failed because the interest rates were too high, they stupidly bought long-term Treasurys, and those Treasurys got crushed because Powell keeps raising interest rates.”

“But that’s up to Biden. He’s going to have to worry about that himself,” Trump added.

The Epoch Times has contacted the Federal Reserve for comment.