Powell refutes claims that September rate cut was linked to U.S. election

U.S. Rep. Mike Lawler asked Powell at Wednesday's hearing, "Would a rate cut in September, which investors now believe is about 70 percent likely, be seen as a political move to try to change the landscape of the campaign ahead of the Nov. 5 election?" Powell refuted those claims, saying the Fed will make rate decisions "when necessary." "Our commitment is to make decisions when needed based on the data, the upcoming data, the changing outlook and the balance of risks, rather than considering other factors, which include politics. That's what we've always done, including in election years ...... everything we do will be based on evidence. For us, in any case, it's not appropriate to take the election cycle into account [when making interest rate decisions]."