Trump Falsely Claims Fed Board Has Been Voting to Raise Rates for Political Reasons, Blames 'Artificially High' Rates for Cost-of-Living Pain

Hosting cryptocurrency executives including Coinbase's Brian Armstrong, Ripple's Brad Garlinghouse, Robinhood's Vlad Tenev, and the Winklevoss twins in the Roosevelt Room on August 19, 2026, Trump complained that interest rates were 'artificially high' amid a multiyear high in long-term Treasury yields that was pushing up mortgage and other borrowing costs. Of the Federal Reserve's board, Trump said: 'The problem is he has a board, and it's a political board. People put in by Obama, Biden and me, and there are quite a few members still left, as you understand, and so they vote to raise interest rates. I don't know if they're doing it because they think they're doing a good thing or because they like the politics of it.' He added, 'My point is, years ago, 25 years ago, when the country announced good numbers, interest rates went down because we had a stronger country. Now, when we announce good numbers, the better they are, the worse it is for interest rates,' and praised Fed Chair Kevin Warsh, whom he had installed, as doing 'a great job.' Yahoo Finance/AP reporting noted the Federal Open Market Committee had not voted to raise rates since July 2023 -- it cut rates three times in late 2025 and held steady through most of 2026 -- directly contradicting Trump's implication that the board was actively voting for increases. The remarks extended Trump's yearlong campaign of pressure on the Fed over interest rates into a period of rising bond yields and continued affordability complaints.

“The problem is he has a board, and it's a political board. People put in by Obama, Biden and me, and there are quite a few members still left, as you understand, and so they vote to raise interest rates.” — Trump on the Federal Reserve's board during an August 19, 2026 White House meeting with cryptocurrency executives.