Few people can stand their ground in the face of power, and Jerome Powell is one of them.

Jerome Powell broke a record — since 1970, he is the first Federal Reserve Chair without a Ph.D. in Economics. With a legal background and Wall Street experience, this combination seems out of place in the academically dominated central banking system. He was a partner at Carlyle Group, specializing in corporate mergers and leveraged buyouts, which helped him accumulate $55 million in personal assets, ranking him among the top five in Fed Chair history.

More money, more confidence.

When Trump took office in 2017, he chose Powell because he understood business, was tall, and looked controllable. Coming from the Republican Party, he was expected to be obedient — that was Trump's calculation. But in 2018, to prevent the economy from overheating, Powell raised interest rates four times in a row, causing the stock market to crash. An angry Trump broke White House taboos, launching a barrage of attacks on Twitter.

Someone else might have backed down. Powell did not. As a lawyer, he only trusts evidence. His experience with corporate restructuring at Carlyle taught him what liquidity freezes can do to the economy — this isn’t something models can predict; it’s real bankruptcies, unemployment, and chain reactions.

He’s not just tough. In 2019, when unemployment was still very low, he suddenly turned around and cut interest rates. Hawks criticized him for softening, but he was very accurate — as trade tensions escalated, he needed to leave room for a recession. This move saved the U.S. economy. When the black swan of the pandemic arrived, the economy didn’t collapse; instead, it experienced a recovery almost unseen in textbooks.

What happened in the U.S. from 2023 to 2025? According to classical economics, falling inflation should lead to soaring unemployment. But now? Inflation has dropped to 2%, and unemployment is only 4%. Behind this is precise monetary policy.

Trump wants to replace him. According to U.S. law, replacing a Fed Chair requires congressional approval; the President has no direct way. What did Powell do? He built a political firewall through cups of coffee, handshakes, and connections with Congress members. One person’s political risk became the institutional cost for the entire country.

Now Trump is launching criminal investigations against him, trying to force him to resign before his term ends. This is about establishing authority, showing who’s in charge. But this move is actually very poor — it’s like threatening the interest rates set in the public interest.

Powell is 72 years old, and he has enough money. What does he care about? His legacy. From now on, he will only be more determined. His chairmanship ends this May, but as a Fed Governor, he still has a long term. He’s likely to block newcomers, like a stubborn fixture, watching Trump’s new Chair to prevent chaos.

He’s not an economic genius and has made mistakes. But in an era of pandemic supply chain disruptions and rampant populism, his unwavering stance at critical moments exemplifies what professional integrity means. Public authority must stand firm in the face of threats. Someone has to insist.