President Donald Trump on Sunday disputed a Wall Street Journal story alleging that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent urged him to avoid firing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell partly over concerns about the impact of his potential removal on the U.S. economy, declaring that he knows “better than anybody what’s good for the Market.”

Donald Trump is reportedly fuming over a Wall Street Journal report claiming Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent talked him out of firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell. While Trump dismissed the account, CNBC’s Andrew Ross Sorkin says a new strategy may be emerging: naming a “shadow Fed chair” ahead of Powell’s term ending in May.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Tuesday that a “formal process” to find a successor for Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has already started — as the Trump administration ratchets up pressure for the top central banker to step aside before his term ends.

The Treasury secretary also stated his preference that Powell step down from the Fed entirely when his term ends. “Traditionally, the Fed chair also steps down as a governor."