President Donald Trump on Tuesday threatened to file a lawsuit against Jerome Powell, the Chairman of the Federal Reserve, over renovations to the agency’s building.
In a post on Truth Social, the president lambasted Powell over his refusal to lower interest rates and his handling of the renovations to the Federal Reserve’s building.
“Jerome ‘Too Late’ Powell must NOW lower the rate,” Trump wrote. ‘Steve “Manouychin’ really gave me a ‘beauty’ when he pushed this loser. The damage he has done by always being Too Late is incalculable.”
Trump said he is “ considering allowing a major lawsuit against Powell to proceed because of the horrible, and grossly incompetent, job he has done in managing the construction of the Fed Buildings.”
“Three Billion Dollars for a job that should have been a $50 Million Dollar fix up. Not good!” the president added.
President Trump has repeatedly criticized Powell for keeping interest rates high. He argues that this is stifling economic growth and raising the cost of government borrowing.
Powell has kept interest rates at 4.3 percent throughout 2025 after three cuts in 2024. The chair has expressed concerns about Trump’s tariffs and their potential impact on inflation.
Trump has floated the idea of firing Powell. However, he recently indicated that it was “highly unlikely” that he would take this action before the chair’s term ends in May 2026.
Trump was right again.
— C3 (@C_3C_3) August 12, 2025
Jerome Powell was wrong again.
The tariff inflation came in way less than the “experts” predicted.
Cut the interest rates! pic.twitter.com/S3iVwvcKPO
The Federal Reserve is undergoing a major renovation of its headquarters. The project was approved in 2017. The two buildings that comprise the headquarters were both constructed in the 1930s. The renovations are aimed at modernizing aging infrastructure, replacing old electrical, plumbing, and HVAC systems, while removing hazardous materials like asbestos and lead.
The project was initially projected to cost $1.9 billion. But they have inflated to about $2.5 to $3.1 billion.
It is not clear which lawsuit the president is referring to. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) has advocated legal action against Powell for allegedly giving false testimony to Congress in June about the Fed’s renovation plans. She called on the Justice Department to “open a formal investigation into whether Chairman Powell’s actions meet the statutory thresholds for criminal prosecution.”
I am calling on the DOJ to open a formal investigation into whether Chairman Powell’s actions meet the statutory thresholds for criminal prosecution.
— Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (@RepLuna) July 21, 2025
American people deserve transparency— not deception— especially when billions of dollars and institutional integrity are at… pic.twitter.com/EcwqDbaX0p