Powell vs. Trump: Rate Cuts, Pressure, and the Limits of Power

Since returning to office a few months ago, Trump has made it clear: he wants interest rates to come down—and he wants it now. But fortunately (or unfortunately), the decision doesn’t rest with him. That authority lies with the independent US Federal Reserve, led by Jerome Powell.

Despite Trump’s ongoing pressure—whether through speeches or sharp social media posts—Powell hasn’t flinched. He’s held firm in his stance, making it clear that the Fed will respond to economic conditions, labour market strength, and inflation data—not political pressure. Powell has reiterated this repeatedly at press conferences, brushing off Trump’s criticisms and continuing to operate by the principles that have long guided the Federal Reserve.

Now, the latest headlines have taken a sharper turn. Trump is reportedly seeking to fire the very man he once nominated during his first term. Overnight, he stated, “termination cannot come fast enough!” in a swipe at Powell, reacting to news that the European Central Bank is expected to cut interest rates for the seventh time. But Powell’s position isn’t easy to dismantle. As chair of an independent agency, he can only be removed “for cause”—meaning misconduct or failure to fulfil duties, not simply because of policy disagreements.

So it’s extremely unlikely Trump gets his way. Powell is expected to remain in his role and continue making data-driven decisions. What we can expect, however, is more pressure from Trump—most likely via social media and pressers.

Meanwhile in the crypto space...

Bitcoin had another quiet session, moving just 1% higher from the day’s open. We’re now six days into a tight Bitcoin range—just 3% wide—between $83K and $86K. We saw something similar in March: over a week of sideways action before a breakout, which at the time was sparked by tariff headlines. We could be looking at a similar setup again.

Stormrake Spotlight: Ripple (XRP) ($2.05)

Another day, another failed attempt for XRP to reclaim the 21EMA. Unless Bitcoin breaks out of its range and pushes higher, XRP looks set to retest the bottom of its range. The $1.98 level has only been breached once in the last five months—and when it was, XRP swiftly reclaimed it.

BTC/USD Key Levels and Price Action:

Bitcoin has climbed from the range low and is now testing a key level at $85.2K. The slow grind up has brought a bullish momentum shift, marked by a bullish cross between the 21EMA and 55EMA. Should BTC break above this resistance, expect the top CPR resistance which has been resistance for the last six days. If it fails here, we could see a pullback towards the range low at $83.6K.

BTC Total ETF Flows for 17 April: $ + 25.9 million

*All prices are denominated in USD unless stated otherwise*

Written by Alexandar Artis

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