The president did, however, say the Fed’s move was justified as a result of the strength seen in the economy, but also said, “but basically I am a low-interest-rate person.”
In an interview with CNBC earlier this year, Trump already took a shot at the Fed, saying he’s “not happy” about the Federal Reserve’s latest monetary policy moves to raise interest rates. In typical Trump fashion, the president took to social media to say that the U.S. “should not be penalized because we are doing so well.”
….The United States should not be penalized because we are doing so well. Tightening now hurts all that we have done. The U.S. should be allowed to recapture what was lost due to illegal currency manipulation and BAD Trade Deals. Debt coming due & we are raising rates – Really?
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 20, 2018
Meanwhile, if a rising chorus of concerns starts to make itself heard regarding higher interest rates–for example, banks fretting that higher rates are dampening their lending businesses–this could give the Fed pause in more rate hikes–something the president would be quick to point out if such took place. Until 2020, Trump doesn’t want the economy to experience an unceremonious fall from grace as a result of rates and as such, any more tightening of monetary policy by the Fed will certainly come under the president’s scrutiny.
Gene Simmons: Trump will Win 2020 by ‘A Landslide’
In the meantime, Trump is already getting a vote of confidence in 2020 from celebrities like KISS band member Gene Simmons. In an interview with the Toronto Sun, Simmons also alluded to the strength in the economy–a major point that could cement Trump’s 2020 re-election bid despite his detractors.
“A lot of people are unhappy, perhaps rightfully so (with Trump’s role as president),” said Simmons. “But the Dow Jones Industrial (average is) 26,000 or so, job rates are down to 3.9 percent, the economy is booming like never before. The rest of it — politics. You like the guy, vote him back in. You don’t like guy, just make sure nobody votes him back in. My assessment is very clear — unless he’s impeached, if there are no more big wars, and if the Dow approaches 29,000, which it may, not only will President Trump be re-elected, but it’ll be a landslide.”
For more trends in fixed income, visit the Fixed Income Channel.