CNN host Abby Phillip clashed with Republican strategist Scott Jennings as they went round in circles over his refusal to give a clear answer on whether the Federal Reserve should be independent of Donald Trump’s “whims.”
The NewsNight panel on Tuesday discussed the president “spooking” the markets with his tariffs, and his constant Truth Social haranguing of the Fed chair, Jerome Powell.
Trump softened his tone on Powell earlier that day, saying in an Oval Office address to reporters that he “never” had any intention of firing him.
He has, however, called for Powell’s head in several social media posts—complaining about the fact Powell refuses to lower interest rates to bail him out of his economic mess.
Phillip played a clip of Trump’s comments in the White House Tuesday, saying they were evidence of the president “backing down.” This rattled Jennings, the panel’s token Republican.
Phillip then asked him: “Do you agree or disagree that the Fed should be independent?”
“I think the president should be able to render an opinion about monetary policy,” he replied, with a visibly shocked Phillip retorting: “That is a yes or no question!”
“Whether he should be able to fire him [Powell] is another question,” Jennings added, with the host shooting back across again with: “That is a yes or no question.”
She then repeated the question with a stern tone. “I think the president ought to be able to have opinions…” Jennings started.
“Why can’t you say yes or no?!” Phillip shot back.
It comes as Trump has backed off his attacks on Powell, due to their effect on the stock market and on investors.
His position is that Powell should lower interest rates. “Powell’s termination cannot come fast enough!” Trump said in one particularly harsh Truth Social post last week.
On Monday, Trump launched a fresh offensive, calling Powell a “major loser” and threatened to fire him if he refused to slash interest rates.
Ny Monday’s close, the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq Composite had all fallen by more than 2 percent.
On Tuesday, however, Trump did a complete about-face, perhaps in attempt to rescue the markets. He accused the press of “running away” with the notion of a possible ouster and said he has “no intention” of booting the central bank leader.
The markets responded favorably, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures rising 654 points, or 1.66 percent. Futures tied to the S&P 500 rose 2.09 percent, while Nasdaq 100 futures were up 2.44 percent.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s comments about the possibility of “de-escalation” in Trump’s trade war with China also appeared to buoy investor sentiment.
Jennings, meanwhile, said on NewsNight that he thinks it is an “open question” about whether the president should be able to fire the Fed Chair, with Republicans split over the matter.
He added, however, that Trump should certainly get a say on monetary policy. This re-started the merry go-round conversation on Tuesday’s episode.
“I’m going to give you a third try on this one,” Phillip said. “Should the Fed’s decisions about how they operate, the interest rates when they raise or lower them, should they be independent?”
Jennings responded: “Does independent mean they don’t take his opinion into consideration?”
“Independent means no, they don’t take his opinion into consideration,” Phillip said. Jennings responded: “I don’t agree with that, I’m sorry.”
He accused the host of “putting words in his mouth” when she brought in The Economist’s executive editor, Charlotte Howard, by saying that “people like Scott believe the Fed should be listening to the president and acting accordingly.”
He repeated his assertion that the president should merely be able to have an opinion.
Howard said that monetary decisions should be made “based on economic data, not on the whims of a president.”
She said “it’s very, very clear that the market responds extremely negatively to even a hint that the president might intervene.”
Jennings said: “Intervene and rendering an opinion are two different things.” He repeated his assertion that the president should be able to offer an opinion.
This led to a harsh rebuke from the host, who said: “You keep repeating something that nobody ever said. No one ever said that Trump cannot have an opinion.
“The question is, should the Fed act based on that opinion?”
Again, Phillip had to “reset” the debate because Jennings attempted “to change the subject multiple times.”
The segment ended in a stalemate and the panel had to move on to other news.
The post CNN Host Clashes With MAGA Panelist: ‘Why Can’t You Say Yes Or No?!’ appeared first on The Daily Beast.
