💰 “FED MAHAL”: Trump Explodes Over Federal Reserve’s $2 Billion Renovation — “Jerome Powell Thinks He’s Building a Palace!” 🏛️🔥

The blueprints may show steel, marble, and reinforced glass — but the latest battle between Donald Trump and Jerome Powell isn’t about architecture.

Trump and Powell spar over costs of Fed renovations | Reuters

It’s about symbolism, power, and what happens when a building becomes a lightning rod for populist rage.

It began quietly.

The Federal Reserve, citing long-overdue infrastructure updates, greenlit a major renovation of its D.C.headquarters — a project with a projected cost reportedly exceeding $2 billion.

The goal? Modernization.

Security.

Energy efficiency.

But for former President Donald Trump, it’s something else entirely: an elite fortress being gilded while average Americans struggle to buy eggs.

Trump took to Truth Social this week, delivering one of his signature tirades — part mockery, part warning, and all aimed directly at Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell.

Trump visits Federal Reserve and tussles with Jerome Powell in  extraordinary moment | WUNC

“Jerome Powell is building himself a palace — the Fed Mahal! While Main Street suffers, he’s laying down gold-plated floors and bulletproof ego-glass.

What’s he hiding from?”

The nickname — a reference to the opulent Taj Mahal, combined with the Fed’s institutional gravitas — immediately caught fire online.

Within hours, #FedMahal was trending on X, meme pages were comparing renderings of the renovation to royal palaces, and late-night comedians had latched onto the spectacle with glee.

But underneath the satire lies a much more serious political drama — one that exposes deep fractures between monetary policymakers and the populist right.

To Trump and his allies, the project is tone-deaf at best, corrupt at worst.

“It’s outrageous,” said former Trump advisor Stephen Miller.

“Americans are living paycheck to paycheck, and Powell’s Fed thinks this is the moment to install luxury elevators and state-of-the-art conference centers? What message does that send?”

Trump Says He Won't Fire Powell Despite Bout of Bickering Over Renovation  Costs - WSJ

The message, according to the Fed, is one of necessity.

In a rare public statement, the institution defended the move, citing aging infrastructure, modern security threats, and environmental concerns.

“This building hasn’t seen structural modernization in over 50 years.

We are not ‘decorating’ — we are securing and future-proofing,” the statement read.

But for Trump, the explanation only poured gasoline on the fire.

In a follow-up rally speech in Ohio, he leaned into the attack: “Powell says it’s for ‘security’? Maybe he’s just afraid of Americans asking why inflation’s still eating their savings! You can’t fix that with marble lobbies and Italian chandeliers!”

The crowd roared.

Privately, sources close to Powell are reportedly baffled — and frustrated.

One insider noted, “Chairman Powell had no personal involvement in the design.

This is an institutional decision, approved through multiple agencies.

It’s not his personal mansion.

White House keeps pressure on Fed Chair Powell day after Trump appeared to  back off

Still, the optics are difficult to defend in an election cycle.

With inflation still haunting households, and with Trump using every lever of outrage to boost his 2024 bid, the renovation has become more than a construction site.

It’s a metaphor — one Trump is gleefully weaponizing.

And the imagery is potent.

Drone footage of the partially constructed building shows scaffolding covering the once-proud neoclassical columns.

Fencing surrounds the area.

The Fed, in Trump’s narrative, isn’t just hiding — it’s fortifying.

Political analysts are now calling it a defining “culture war moment” — where fiscal policy meets populist rage.

“This is less about the money, and more about the moment,” says veteran strategist Linda Carville.

“Trump has found a way to paint the Fed as a bloated, detached monarchy.

And Powell — usually a behind-the-scenes figure — is now a character in the theater.

And what of the $2 billion price tag?

While experts say such costs are not unusual for federal structures of that size and importance, the number is still jarring.

“Two billion for a facelift,” one Fox News panelist mocked.

“What’s next, a throne room?”

Adding to the drama: a leaked internal memo from Fed staff reportedly includes line items like “executive conference suites,” “custom security vaults,” and “energy-optimized lighting systems.

” None of which scream austerity.

And as the narrative spreads, even Powell’s allies are beginning to shift tone — urging the Fed to be more transparent, more communicative, and far less insulated.

Meanwhile, Trump has promised this is just the beginning.

“They can keep building their Fed Mahal,” he said at his latest campaign stop.

“But I’m telling you — in 2025, we’re moving out the thrones and bringing back the people.

Whether or not Trump regains the presidency, one thing is clear: he’s turned drywall and blueprints into campaign dynamite.

And for Jerome Powell — a man trained to be invisible, technical, and unemotional — that might be the most uncomfortable spotlight of all.

Because sometimes, it’s not about what you’re building.