Fed Chair says he would not resign if Trump asked him

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell on Friday said he would not resign if President Donald Trump asked him to do so.

Powell replied “no” when directly asked if he would step down if the president requested it during an appearance at a roundtable in Atlanta at the annual meeting of the American Economic Association. 

The Fed chairman said he has not communicated directly with the White House, and that no meetings with the president had been scheduled, but he did not rule out one occurring in the future. “Meetings between the presidents and the Fed chairs do happen,” he said. 

During an amicable discussion that had Powell and his immediate past predecessors, Janet Yellen and Ben Bernanke, expressing similar views on the economy and on the need for the Fed to set its policy independently of political considerations. 

Mr. Trump has publicly expressed regrets about appointing Powell as Fed chairman and repeatedly attacked the central bank for raising interest rates. 

This is a developing story….