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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsMaddowBlog-Trump's case against Jerome Powell collapses, proving the value of fighting back
The president went after the Fed chair with a vengeance, trying everything to get Powell to yield. But he didnt.
Under enormous pressure, Powell did his job without making any effort to appease Trump, cater to his ego, accommodate his demands, or offer some compromise.
— Steve Benen (@stevebenen.com) 2026-04-24T16:14:21.917Z
Thereâs a lesson here for everyone about the value in fighting back, ignoring bullying, and doing the right thing.
www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...
https://www.ms.now/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/trumps-case-against-jerome-powell-collapses-proving-the-value-of-fighting-back
That effort failed in multiple ways. Even after Trumps Justice Department launched a misguided criminal investigation, for example, Powell ignored the pressure, as he had a responsibility to do. This also led to a political pushback that proved swift, broad and bipartisan, with several congressional Republicans agreeing it was a mistake to pursue the Fed chair with trumped-up charges.....
On Friday morning, however, she reversed course and seemed to throw in the towel. MS NOW reported:
The Justice Department has closed its criminal investigation into Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell over the renovation of the central banks headquarters, removing an obstacle for Kevin Warsh, President Donald Trumps pick to replace Powell, to be confirmed to the role.
U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro, a close Trump ally, said in a statement on social media Friday that the inspector general for the Fed is instead conducting an inquiry into the buildings renovation costs.
.....Any time prosecutors abandon a case that was little more than politically motivated abuse, its encouraging, but as the dust settles, there are broader lessons to be learned here.
Specifically, Powell didnt flinch. The president of the United States went after him with a vengeance, trying everything he could think of, up to and including misusing the DOJ, to get the Fed chair to yield.
But he didnt. Powell just kept doing his job, without making any effort to appease Trump, cater to his ego, accommodate his demands or offer some compromise.
The pressure was intense, but the Fed chair, who was awarded a John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award last month, did the right thing anyway.
Let this be a lesson to the larger political world: The only way to lose a fight against Trump is to pursue a course rooted in appeasement. Its true when it comes to news organizations; its true when it comes to law firms; its true when it comes to higher education; and its true when it comes to those in positions of authority who stand their ground in the face of presidential bullying and corrupt prosecutorial attempts at intimidation.
Ocelot II
(130,943 posts)IT IS always a temptation to an armed and agile nation
To call upon a neighbour and to say:
"We invaded you last nightwe are quite prepared to fight,
Unless you pay us cash to go away."
And that is called asking for Dane-geld,
And the people who ask it explain
That you've only to pay 'em the Dane-geld
And then you'll get rid of the Dane!
It is always a temptation for a rich and lazy nation,
To puff and look important and to say:
"Though we know we should defeat you,
we have not the time to meet you.
We will therefore pay you cash to go away."
And that is called paying the Dane-geld;
But we've proved it again and again,
That if once you have paid him the Dane-geld
You never get rid of the Dane.
It is wrong to put temptation in the path of any nation,
For fear they should succumb and go astray;
So when you are requested to pay up or be molested,
You will find it better policy to say:
"We never pay any-one Dane-geld,
No matter how trifling the cost;
For the end of that game is oppression and shame,
And the nation that plays it is lost!"
(-Rudyard Kipling)
The story behind the poem is that when the Danish Vikings invaded Britain in the 9th century they demanded a kind of protection money from the resident Anglo-Saxons, which was called the Danegeld. The problem was that paying off the Danes didn't work; they'd just come back for more. Same with Trump. You give him what he wants; after awhile he demands more, like the bully who demanded your lunch money every day.