US President Donald Trump plans to visit the Federal Reserve headquarters on Thursday, escalating his campaign to pressure Fed Chairman Jerome Powell to cut interest rates.
This will be the first time in nearly two decades that a president has made an official visit to the central bank, as presidents have long respected the Fed's independence.
Based on the president's schedule released by the White House on Wednesday evening, he will spend about an hour at the central bank, an unusual move that increases pressure on Powell at a time when he faces repeated criticism from the US administration for not cutting interest rates since the beginning of this year, as well as the cost of renovating the bank's headquarters.
Trump joins several administration officials, including White House Budget Director Russell Fugate, who will visit the Fed on Thursday to investigate the project to renovate the bank's headquarters