It never stops. The soap opera never stops in Donald Trump’s America. Every, single day there has to be some measure of acrimony.

The strategy’s as plain as it is tragic. The only way to keep the country in thrall to grievance politics is to perpetuate resentment. Something always has to be wrong, and that means blame-casting’s always in order.

On Friday, just before celebrating what he described (euphemistically) as “great jobs numbers,” Trump set about trashing the Fed in a pair of melodramatic posts on TruthSocial, where he made absurdist demands couched in comically overwrought, grammatically questionable, terms.

“‘Too Late’ at the Fed is a disaster!” Trump said, referring to Jerome Powell by his derisive nickname. Since we’re dwelling in the Trumpian abyss here, let me pause to note that “Too Late” isn’t a moniker that works well with this sort of mud-slinging. You need something like “Stinky Butt.” Or “Big Ears.” You might say, of a co-worker you despise, “‘Big Ears’ is a disaster!” But you wouldn’t say, “I’ve had just about enough of ‘Always Early’!” No one would understand you.

Trump proceeded to complain, for the second time this week, that “Europe has had 10 rate cuts” while the US has “had none.” That’s just not true. Europe’s had eight rate cuts, and the US three (or four, depending on whether you want to count September’s 50bps move as one or two). Also, two of the Fed cuts came after the election.

That sort of lying isn’t harmless, even if it’s accidental (it’s possible Trump isn’t aware he’s lying about the ECB, and by “none” in the context of the Fed, he almost surely means post-Inauguration Day). Forget Trump’s under-educated base, the vast (vast) majority of Americans have no idea how many times a foreign central bank might’ve cut rates during a given easing cycle, so when Trump says 10, you can be absolutely sure everyone who takes him serious, and even a lot of people who don’t, assume that’s true.

Americans might likewise assume he’s telling the truth about the Fed. Because let’s face it, the share of US voters who know how many times the Fed’s cut rates recently isn’t that much larger than the share who can tell you how many times the ECB’s cut. Notably, Trump could make the exact same point without lying. Disingenuous political spin included. He might say the following, for example: “Europe cut rates FOUR times since I took office, and the Fed hasn’t cut once! Don’t be POLITICAL, Jay!”

Anyway, Trump went on to demand of Powell a full-point cut, presumably at the June FOMC. “Rocket Fuel!” as Trump put it. I suppose this goes without saying, but that’s not going to happen. There’s no chance of a cut at all, let alone an upsized cut. I’m not sure whether Trump realizes this, but if the Fed followed his “advice” and cut rates by 100bps later this month, there’s a decent chance equities, bonds and the dollar would all shudder in tandem. Because we’d be witnessing the beginning of the end for independent US monetary policy.

So when Trump says, as he did Friday, that “If ‘Too Late’ at the Fed would CUT, we would greatly reduce interest rates, long and short,” he’s right about the “short” part, but not necessarily the “long.” This isn’t worth saying because it’s so far-fetched as to be irrelevant, but the optics of a 100bps cut from this Fed (i.e., a Fed under Nixonian pressure), this month, when the market’s pricing virtually no chance of any cut, would be very bad. “A disaster,” as Trump might put it.

Trump’s allusion to the funding mix was notable. He casually mentioned that “Biden went mostly short-term.” While that was derided at the time as an example of ineptness on Janet Yellen’s part (or worse, as politicizing Treasury issuance), Scott Bessent might likewise lean into T-bills. Yellen’s critics said she should’ve termed-out America’s debt when rates were low, a silly contention on some vectors, but that’s irrelevant in 2025. The 2s30s is the steepest in more than three years, and Bessent may need to cut coupon sizes and shift issuance to Bills out of necessity (i.e., to get the best deal for taxpayers).

In his Friday harangue, Trump blamed Powell for America’s rising interest-cost burden instead of himself for ballooning the deficit. “He is costing our Country a fortune,” Trump said of Powell. “Borrowing costs should be MUCH LOWER!!!”

Cutting rates won’t necessarily provide meaningful, lasting relief at the long-end of the Treasury curve. QE would, though. If Trump wants Powell to rev up the Ponzi machine and fund the GOP’s deficit spending, he should just say that.

Coming full circle, every day’s an exercise in fire-stoking for Trump. Whenever there’s an excuse for Americans to relax and enjoy life — e.g., because it’s a holiday, or because there’s a major sporting event, or even just because it’s Friday — he invariably intercedes to ensure the level of rancor stays dialed up. Part of that’s just Trump being Trump. But part of it’s strategic. Enmity is the oxygen for the MAGA fire.