U.S. Rep. Patrick McHenry, R-Calif., speaks to members of the media outside the office of U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., at the U.S. Capitol on October 3, 2023 in Washington.
Mandel and | AFP | Getty Images
Republican Rep. Patrick McHenry on Tuesday sharply criticized other politicians for making public comments about how the Federal Reserve should approach its interest rate policy.
McHenry, the outgoing chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, said it was an “outrage” for some politicians to openly lobby the central bank to cut interest rates.
“What pisses me off is… if you’re on the right, for example, you say the Fed should be independent, but I think they should be doing that now. And that’s the same thing on the left,” McHenry said.
“Senators who are trying to guide the Fed on interest rate policy are actually belittling their role… They are belittling their role as U.S. senators,” he added.
McHenry’s comments came a day after the Federal Reserve was widely expected to begin cutting interest rates for the first time since 2020. influence. Chairman Jerome Powell, first appointed by Trump and reappointed by President Joe Biden, has repeatedly denied that was a factor.
On Monday, Democratic Sens. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, John Hickenlooper of Colorado and Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island called on the Fed to lower its benchmark lending rate 0.75 percentage pointshigher than the most aggressive market expectations. Warren and Whitehouse are both up for re-election in November, while Hickenlooper’s term ends in 2026.
Republicans taking part in the discussions include former President Trump, who said at a news conference in August that he believed he should have a say in monetary policy if he won in November. Utah Republican Sen. Mike Lee also introduced a bill earlier this year that would Abolish the Federal Reserve.
Asked about Trump’s comments, McHenry said that “all presidents feel they should speak out,” but that central bankers should ignore politicians’ comments.
“The Fed should act the way the data shows. Period,” McHenry said.
The remarks were made at a conference hosted by the Psaros Center for Financial Markets and Policy at Georgetown University.
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