Trump’s latest attack on a political foe was galling. So was the silence that followed

It’s no longer possible to be shocked by the Trump administration’s overreach, including its pursuit of the president’s political enemies.

The latest is Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell – the US equivalent of Reserve Bank governor Michele Bullock – who says he is under criminal investigation by Donald Trump’s Department of Justice over evidence he gave to Congress about a major renovation of the Fed’s office buildings.

Trump loathes Powell for being “too slow” to cut interest rates last year – even though Powell is a Republican, and was, in fact, appointed as Fed chair by Trump during his first term.

In an extraordinary video message announcing that the Fed had been issued with subpoenas to testify before a grand jury, Powell was emphatic: this was not about a building reno. It was blatantly political.

“The threat of criminal charges is a consequence of the Federal Reserve setting interest rates [independently] rather than following the preferences of the president,” he said.

Trump coming after his political foes is nothing new. He tried – and failed, so far – to indict New York Attorney-General Letitia James and former FBI director James Comey.

It’s made all the more galling by the fact Powell is on his way out – his term ends in May – and already cut interest rates in December.

Powell has shown fortitude in going public and calling out the unprecedented attack on the Fed’s independence. But who else will stick their neck out, both for him and the principle? So far, it’s slim pickings.

There was a gaping silence on Powell from certain business and techs titans who spend large parts of their days posting opinions online.

Often outspoken hedge fund manager Bill Ackman has had nothing to say, nor has Tesla and SpaceX boss Elon Musk or entrepreneur and Trump adviser David Sacks. Silicon Valley types such as Mark Zuckerberg and Tim Cook, or Wall Street bigwigs like Jamie Dimon, had not popped their heads above the parapet to defend Powell at the time of writing (though Dimon has previously). Nor, however, is anyone applauding the move.

Justin Wolfers, an Australian economics and public policy professor at the University of Michigan, said it was unsurprising that people would not speak out when Trump has demonstrated his propensity to punish critics.

“You haven’t seen the business community react particularly strongly, but that’s precisely because of the authoritarian instincts of the president,” he said.

Likewise, there is little sign Trump’s treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, or commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick – both serious business figures in their own right – will go into bat for Powell. Granted, we do not know what they might be saying behind the scenes.

The director of Trump’s National Economic Council, Kevin Hassett – a candidate to replace Powell as Fed chair – was unfussed about the development when he spoke to CNBC television.

“It’s part of government to have people look at you … and check that what you’re doing is completely on the up and up,” Hassett said.

Asked whether the renovation looked like a pretext for going after Powell, he said: “In the fullness of time, we’ll find out.”

The economics policy community has been much stronger. In a joint statement, 13 senior figures – including all three living former Fed chairs Alan Greenspan, Janet Yellen and Ben Bernanke – condemned the administration for using prosecutorial attacks to undermine the central bank’s independence, comparing it to the conduct of developing nations.

“This is how monetary policy is made in emerging markets with weak institutions, with highly negative consequences for inflation and the functioning of their economies more broadly,” they said.

“It has no place in the United States whose greatest strength is the rule of law, which is at the foundation of our economic success.”

Likewise, Harvard economics Professor Jason Furman noted other countries that prosecuted or threatened to prosecute central bankers for political purposes included Venezuela, Russia, Turkey, Argentina and Zimbabwe.

“This is not a difficult or controversial issue. The attack on Powell is dangerous,” Furman said on X.

In Congress, the most vocal resistance thus far has come from retiring Republican senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina, who said there was now no doubt that advisers in the Trump administration were actively pushing to end the Fed’s independence.

Trump has long argued he, as president, should have input on the Fed’s interest rate decision. “I’ve done great. I’ve made a lot of money, I’m very successful ... I think my voice should be heard,” he said last month.

Tillis, who is on the Senate banking committee, said he would oppose the confirmation of any nominee for the Fed’s board – including for Powell’s imminent vacancy – “until this legal matter is fully resolved”.

Wolfers said the pursuit of Powell was “pointlessly destructive” for the American people and unhelpful for Trump’s own agenda because it risked intervention from senators such as Tillis.

“The president only had to wait until May,” Wolfers said. “He’s gone and blown up the institution’s credibility – or attempted to – for no reason other than that he couldn’t wait four months.”

Get a note directly from our foreign correspondents on what’s making headlines around the world. Sign up for our weekly What in the World newsletter.