Where things stand
• Focus on the economy: President Donald Trump is traveling to Michigan today, where he’ll tour a Ford factory and speak at the Detroit Economic Club. The visit comes as new Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows US consumer prices rose 2.7% annually in December.
• Fed investigation: Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has told people he is unhappy with the decision to criminally investigate Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, a source with knowledge of the matter told CNN. Republicans have pushed back on the probe, and central bankers from around the world have since expressed support for the Federal Reserve System.
• Iran protests: Trump said he’s canceled any meetings with Iranian officials until the crackdown on protests ends, suggesting the window he saw for diplomacy may have closed. That follows his Monday announced that countries that do business with Iran will face a 25% tariff. Follow CNN’s live coverage of the Iranian protests.
Trump again pressures Powell to lower interest rates
President Donald Trump again ramped up the pressure on Fed Chair Jerome Powell to lower interest rates, just days after federal prosecutors opened a controversial criminal investigation into him that has prompted significant GOP blowback.
“Great (LOW!) Inflation numbers for the USA. That means that Jerome ‘Too Late’ Powell should cut interest rates, MEANINGFULLY!!! If he doesn’t he will just continue to be, ‘TOO LATE!’” Trump posted on Truth Social on Tuesday.
As CNN reported, the latest Consumer Price Index showed that the annual pace of inflation was unchanged from November at 2.7%, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data released Tuesday.
Later Tuesday, when asked by a reporter whether he’s concerned the investigation into Powell will undermine confidence in the Fed, Trump criticized Powell’s job performance and claimed he’s “billions of dollars over budget” on its $2.5 billion headquarters renovation project.
“He’s billions of dollars over budget, so he either is incompetent or he’s crooked. I don’t know what he is, but he doesn’t, certainly doesn’t do a very good job,” Trump said while leaving the White House for Michigan.
Trump has said he doesn’t know anything about the criminal investigation, but Powell has said he sees the move as politically motivated.
“The threat of criminal charges is a consequence of the Federal Reserve setting interest rates based on our best assessment of what will serve the public, rather than following the preferences of the President,” he said in a Sunday night video message.
Trump says all meetings with Iran are off until crackdown on protesters ends
President Donald Trump said today he’s canceled any meetings with Iranian officials as a crackdown on protesters continues, suggesting the window of diplomacy that he saw opening days ago had closed.
In a message on Truth Social, Trump encouraged protesters to keep up the demonstrations, and said “help is on the way.”
“Iranian Patriots, KEEP PROTESTING - TAKE OVER YOUR INSTITUTIONS!!!” Trump wrote.
“Save the names of the killers and abusers. They will pay a big price,” he went on. “I have cancelled all meetings with Iranian Officials until the senseless killing of protesters STOPS. HELP IS ON ITS WAY.”
He ended by writing “MIGA,” or Make Iran Great Again.
On Sunday, Trump suggested he was open to talks with the Iranian regime after receiving communication over the weekend. He said a meeting was being set up.
But his message two days later indicated he no longer believes talks would be fruitful.
As Trump prepares to speak on the economy, data shows US inflation remained higher than expected last month
As President Donald Trump prepared to head to Michigan for a visit focused on the economy, Bureau of Labor Statistics data released Tuesday shows that US consumer prices rose 2.7% annually in December, closing out a year that saw slight progress on inflation but continued affordability concerns for many Americans.
The latest Consumer Price Index – which measures the average change in prices for some commonly purchased goods and services – showed that the annual pace of inflation was unchanged from November, according to the data.
However, the monthly pace of inflation accelerated to 0.3% from November, when prices rose at an estimated average pace of 0.1%.
Economists were expecting that monthly CPI would rise 0.3% from November and ease slightly to 2.6% on an annual basis, according to FactSet estimates.
Trump is expected to speak about the economy at the Detroit Economic Club later this afternoon.
Here's what's on Trump's agenda today
President Donald Trump is heading today to Detroit, Michigan, where he’ll focus on the economy.
He’s set to participate in a Ford site visit and plant tour at 12:30 p.m. ET. And later this afternoon, at 2:00 p.m. ET, he’ll speak to the Detroit Economic Club.
