Anika Begay
By Jeff Mason
PHOENIX (Reuters) – U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris said on Saturday that the Federal Reserve is independent and would never interfere in its decisions if she wins the Nov. 5 presidential election.
“The Fed is an independent entity, and as chairman, I would never interfere in the decisions that the Fed makes,” Harris told reporters in Phoenix, Arizona.
Harris’s views contrast sharply with those of the Republican nominee, former President Donald Trump, who on Thursday said that U.S. presidents should have a say in decisions made by the Federal Reserve, the U.S. central bank.
Harris, who was speaking to reporters before boarding a flight to Las Vegas for a campaign event, said she strongly disagreed with Trump’s position on the issue.
Harris, who earlier this week officially became the Democratic Party’s presidential nominee, said she plans to unveil her policy positions next week, with a particular focus on the U.S. economy.
“It will focus on the economy and what we need to do to reduce costs and strengthen the economy overall,” he said.
A spike in the U.S. unemployment rate for July last week helped trigger a global stock market slump that continued into Monday before stocks partially recovered as investors worried the U.S. was headed for a recession and the Fed would have to respond aggressively.
Asked about these concerns and the Fed’s response, Harris said, “As we know, there’s been turbulence this week, but it looks like it’s resolved itself. And we’ll see what … decisions they make next.”
Trump’s comments on Thursday offered the most explicit indication yet of his interest in violating the Federal Reserve’s independence if he wins back the White House.
“I think the president should at least have a say” in the Fed’s decisions, Trump told reporters at his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida.
His comments followed reports this spring that Trump’s allies had developed proposals that would seek to erode the Fed’s independence if he won.
While Trump’s campaign distanced itself from the Wall Street Journal report at the time, its comments Thursday indicate it is fully in line with one of the proposals’ main tenets: If he becomes president, Trump should be consulted on interest-rate decisions, and the Fed’s proposed banking regulations should be subject to White House review.
The current Fed Chairman, Jerome Powell, appointed by Trump and reappointed by President Joe Biden, will remain in office until May 2026.
