Federal Reserve's Bostic: Fed Independence Has Been Eroded

Odaily News: Atlanta Fed President Bostic stated on Wednesday that the rift between the Federal Reserve and the White House has begun to erode public trust in the central bank's apolitical status. This is one of the most direct warnings to date from a senior monetary policy official regarding the consequences of Trump's tough stance towards the Fed. In a farewell article written ahead of his retirement from the Atlanta Fed at the end of February, Bostic noted that his colleagues within the Fed system remain committed to insulating their work from politics. "However, my visits over the past few months have clearly shown that the legal and rhetorical battles surrounding the central bank have led people across all social strata to begin questioning the Fed's independence, which is a serious concern." Bostic is not the only Fed official this year to emphasize the importance of central bank independence, but no one has warned as directly as he did on Wednesday that the current series of controversies could undermine public trust in the institution.