Sen. Rick Scott: Powell’s Balance Sheet Failures Have Caused Massive Misallocation of Capital & Hurt American Families

March 20, 2024

WASHINGTON, D.C.–Today, following Federal Reserve Chair Jay Powell’s press conference after this week’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting, Senator Rick Scott released a statement slamming Powell’s failure to explain or clarify its imminent plans to slow the reduction of the Fed’s $7.5 trillion balance sheet which has caused a massive misallocation of capital. If the Fed had kept its promise and met its current balance sheet reduction targets, the balance sheet would be more than $400 BILLION lower today.

 

Senator Rick Scott said, “Jay Powell’s failed leadership has caused a massive misallocation of capital and the loss of $1.3 TRILLION of taxpayer money. By manipulating the markets, the Fed is attempting to play with long-term interest rates, which is outside of the Fed’s mission. One of the Fed’s main objectives is price stability but everything Jay Powell has done has made life worse for hardworking Americans with skyrocketing interest rates and a total failure to combat out-of-control inflation. It’s clear that under Powell, the FOMC’s decisions have been focused on one thing: growing the Fed’s power and forcing the American people to bear the costs. In Florida, that’s resulting in inflation that has exploded by more than 20% since Biden took office costing families an extra $25,000.

 

“We need to reduce the balance sheet NOW. The Fed should not take its foot off the gas under the fake narrative of global stability. No one should believe the Fed’s fearmongering about liquidity. Jay “Trillion Dollar Loser” Powell is the king of instability and suffering for American families and only reversing his failed policies by actually reducing the balance sheet will provide needed relief and realign the Fed with its true congressional mandate.”

 

Click HERE to read more from Senator Scott’s Quarterly Economic Snapshot.

 

Senator Scott has been vocal about the lack of accountability at the Fed and its lack of a presidentially-appointed and Senate-confirmed Inspector General. Following last year’s shocking failures of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank, Senator Scott and Senator Elizabeth Warren introduced legislation to establish an independent Inspector General at the Fed and improve oversight and accountability. No one at the Fed has been fired following these bank failures.

 

Read more about Senator Scott's efforts to force accountability at the Federal Reserve and the legislative package he is fighting to pass which includes the Regular Order for Investments (ROI) of the Federal Reserve Act, Right-Size the Federal Reserve Act, and the Rein in the Federal Reserve Act HERE. Read more about these proposals in the Senator’s Washington Examiner op-ed HERE.

 

###