Central bankers fear being caught in Federal Reserve's storm

JACKSON HOLE, WYOMING –

Central bankers gathered at a U.S. mountain resort over the weekend are starting to fear that the political storm surrounding the U.S. Federal Reserve may engulf them too.

U.S. President Donald Trump’s efforts to reshape the Fed to his liking and pressure it into interest rate cuts have raised questions about whether the U.S. central bank can preserve its independence and inflation-fighting credentials.

Trump, frustrated by the legal protections given to the Fed’s leadership and the long terms for members of its Board of Governors meant to outlast any given president, has put intense pressure on Chair Jerome Powell to resign and is pushing to oust another board member, Gov. Lisa Cook.