Trump has been patient with Jerome Powell. He’s said so himself, multiple times. But as of Wednesday, that patience officially has a hard deadline — and the deadline is May 15. In a Fox Business interview with Maria Bartiromo, President Trump put Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on notice: leave quietly when your chairman’s term ends next month, or get fired. No more waiting. No more holding back. “I’ve held back firing him,” Trump said. “I’ve wanted to fire him, but I hate to be controversial, you know?” Then the bottom line: “Well then, I’ll have to fire him.” Here’s what he said: President Trump says he will fire Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell if he stays in his role after his term expires.https://t.co/Voqkg3FJgr— CNN (@CNN) April 15, 2026 This has been building for a long time. Trump has been pressing Powell for months to lower interest rates. He’s called him ineffective. He’s said the Fed is out of step with what the American economy needs. And every time, Powell holds the line and does nothing. So now there’s a deadline. Powell’s term as Fed chairman ends May 15. Trump’s pick to replace him — former Fed Governor Kevin Warsh — has his confirmation hearing scheduled for next Tuesday, April 21. The plan was a clean handoff: Warsh comes in, Powell steps out, everyone moves on. Except Powell won’t step out. Wall Street Journal Fed reporter Nick Timiraos broke down the full standoff Wednesday: Trump tells Bartiromo he doesn't want to drop any Fed probe because he thinks the cost overruns need to be examined.He says Tillis's threat to delay Warsh's confirmation isn't serious… and if it is, he'll fire Powell after Powell's term ends https://t.co/pA3Uipz1wT— Nick Timiraos (@NickTimiraos) April 15, 2026 Here’s the deal. Powell’s chairman term ends May 15 — but his term as a Fed board governor runs to 2028. And Powell says he’s not walking away from that board role because of a DOJ criminal investigation into the Federal Reserve’s $2.5 billion headquarters renovation. He won’t leave until it’s “well and truly over.” The problem? A federal judge already ruled that investigation was a political setup. Judge James Boasberg found the government offered “no evidence whatsoever that Powell committed any crime other than displeasing the President” — and wrote there was “abundant evidence that the subpoenas’ dominant (if not sole) purpose is to harass and pressure Powell either to yield to the President or to resign.” Despite that ruling, DOJ prosecutors showed up at the Fed construction site on Tuesday. They’re not backing down either. NPR had more on what both sides are saying: “He’s doing a bad job,” Trump said of Powell. “He should be lowering interest rates.” Powell told reporters he would stay on the job. “That is what the law calls for,” he said. “And that’s what we’re going to do in this situation.” He also declared: “I have no intention of leaving the board until the investigation is well and truly over, with transparency and finality.” Trump declined to halt the DOJ probe. “Don’t you think we have to find out what happened there?” the president said. Now here’s what makes this whole thing a knot. Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina — a Republican and key vote on the Senate Banking Committee — says he won’t confirm Warsh as the new Fed chair until the DOJ investigation against Powell is resolved. So the investigation Trump is using to pressure Powell out is also blocking his replacement from getting in. Trump isn’t backing down. He says Tillis will come around — suggesting the senator “doesn’t want the legacy of having an incompetent guy stay there for longer than is necessary.” And if Tillis doesn’t? Trump says he’ll fire Powell the moment his chair term ends and sort out the confirmation mess later. Spectrum News laid out where the legal battle stands: The investigation concerns Powell’s testimony about the Federal Reserve’s $2.5 billion Washington headquarters renovation. A federal judge quashed government subpoenas last month after prosecutors acknowledged finding no evidence of crime, though U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro vowed to appeal the decision. The Supreme Court is separately reviewing Trump’s attempt to remove Fed board member Lisa Cook — a case that could ultimately define just how much authority a president has over the supposedly independent Federal Reserve. So here’s where things stand on the eve of a Senate confirmation hearing that might not go anywhere: Powell is dug in. Trump has issued a deadline. The Senate is gridlocked. The courts are watching. And Jeanine Pirro is appealing. May 15 is less than a month away. Something is going to have to give.