Trump Fact Checked In Real-Time BTW Fed Chair Jerome Powell

Jul 25, 2025 03:48 PM EDT, Fri

Trump struggles with facts as Fed Chair Jerome Powell corrects him in real time

It was not a flattering moment for a president who routinely makes up figures but who is rarely fact-checked by his appointees on camera.

July 25, 2025, 9:52 AM EDT By Steve Benen

To an unprecedented degree, Donald Trump has lobbied his handpicked Federal Reserve chairman, Jerome Powell, to lower interest rates. The heavy-handed tactics, which have unfolded in recent months in public and private, haven’t had much of an effect, which in turn has generated no shortage of frustration in the Oval Office.

Indeed, the president has resorted to juvenile taunts and name-calling, publicly condemning Powell as, among many other things, a “moron” for failing to follow Trump’s misguided demands.

Having exhausted his usual bullying tactics, the Trumpian and his team began exploring alternative ways to gain leverage over the largely independent Fed chair. Recently, this led the White House in an unexpected direction: Team Trump decided to focus on building renovations at the Federal Reserve, with the president suggesting that cost overruns might constitute grounds to fire Powell, who has ignored calls to resign.

So on Thursday Trump made a historically unusual visit to the Fed’s headquarters in Washington, D.C., presumably to add a fresh round of pressure. This did not go as well for the president as it could have.

During the visit, for example, Trump flubbed basic details about developments at the European Central Bank, which he pretended to know something about. Around the same time, the Trumpian made specific boasts about the impact of a rate cut, which were quickly discredited.

But those comments only set the stage for the pièce de résistance. As The New York Times reported:

The chair of the Federal Reserve closed his eyes and shook his head. He was about to do something that few senior government officials ever do, at least in public: fact-check President Trump in real time.

This is one of those stories in which watching the video is necessary to fully appreciate what transpired.

During brief remarks with reporters, the president, with Powell standing just inches away, declared that cost overruns on the project have reached “about $3.1 billion.” The Fed chair could be seen immediately and rapidly shaking his head, making clear to those in attendance that Trump was citing a number that wasn’t true.

“I’m not aware of that,” Powell interrupted. The figure, the Trumpian responded, “just came out.”

Moments later, Trump tried to justify his claim, pulling a document from his jacket pocket and handing it to the Fed chair. Powell quickly reviewed the data and noticed an important flaw.

“You just added in a third building,” Powell said.

“It’s a building that’s being built,” Trump replied.

“No, it was built five years ago,” the Fed chair reminded him. “It’s not new.”

Oops.

MSNBC: Deadline White House

Nicolle Wallace: ‘Jerome Powell failed to be humiliated by Donald Trump’

Jul 24, 2025 #jeromepowell #trump #fedchair Vaughn Hillyard, NBC News White House Correspondent and Glenn Thrush, New York Times Justice Department Reporter joins Nicolle Wallace on Deadline White House with reaction to Fed Chair Jerome Powell standing up to President Donald Trump as he tried to make up lies in real-time in front of him on camera.

MSNBC: The 11th Hour

‘Trying to govern by shakedown’: Trump, Powell spar publicly over Fed renovation cost

Jul 25, 2025 #JeromePowell #DonaldTrump #FederalReserve President Donald Trump and several allies made a rare visit to the Federal Reserve today, where they surveyed the renovation unfolding at the central bank – and sparred publicly with Chair Jerome Powell. Steve Liesman and John Harwood discuss the feud on The 11th Hour.

MSNBC: The Morning Joe

‘Hall of Fame’ moment: Joe reacts to Trump getting fact-checked by Fed Chair

Jul 25, 2025 #JoeScarborough #JeromePowell #Trump President Trump visited the Federal Reserve with Chair Jerome Powell and Sen. Tim Scott amid weeks of claims that the Fed’s renovation costs were fraudulently inflated. But during the tour, Powell corrected Trump’s $3.1B figure on camera, pointing out the project included a building completed years ago. The Morning Joe panel breaks down the awkward exchange, Trump’s push to lower interest rates, and what it reveals about the White House’s broader strategy.

It was not a flattering moment for a president who routinely makes up figures but who is rarely fact-checked by his own appointees on camera. Indeed, one of the more notable elements of the exchange was that Powell didn’t seem to care at all about Trump’s delicate ego or fear of public humiliation.

As for the underlying issue, it’s true that the renovation project is over budget, but as The Associated Press reported last week, it was Trump appointees, not Powell, who pushed for elements that raised costs.

Steve Benen is a producer for “The Rachel Maddow Show,” the editor of MaddowBlog and an MSNBC political contributor. He’s also the bestselling author of “Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans’ War on the Recent Past.”

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