President Trump prepares for Asia trip, aims for trade deal with China 
During an Oval Office meeting with congressional Republicans a few days ago, President Trump showed off the draft of a letter that would fire Jerome H. Powell, the chair of the Federal Reserve.
It’s the latest chapter in a dysfunctional relationship that has major implications for the global economy.
Guest: Colby Smith (https://www.nytimes.com/by/colby-smith) , who covers the Federal Reserve and the U.S. economy for The Times.
Background reading:
• President Trump waved a copy of a draft letter firing Jerome H. Powell (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/16/us/politics/trump-powell-firing-letter.html) at a meeting in the Oval Office with House Republicans.
• Can Trump fire Powell? It’s likely that he lacks a case (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/16/us/politics/trump-powell-fed-renovations.html) , legal experts say.
For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily (http://nytimes.com/thedaily?smid=pc-thedaily) . Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.
Photo: Tom Brenner/The New York Times
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