President Donald Trump renewed criticism of Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell as he championed his economic policies and tariff regime during an event on Tuesday to mark his 100th day in office.

“Inflation is basically down and interest rates came down despite the fact that I have a Fed person who’s not really doing a good job,” Trump said at a rally just outside of Detroit, Michigan.

The president leveled the criticism even though earlier this month he said he did not plan to fire the central bank chief after days of complaints about the Fed’s pace of interest rate cuts. Uncertainty around Powell’s fate jolted markets, compounding investor fears about Trump’s tariff plans.

“You’re not supposed to criticize the Fed,” Trump said. “You’re supposed to let him do his own thing — but I know much more than he does about interest rates.”

Trump also implored for congressional passage of his tax legislation, an extension of his 2017 overhaul, but with additional items such as no tax on tipped wages, Social Security and overtime, among others. He warned about possible Republican detractors, saying they should be voted out of office if they don’t support it.

He spent much of the rally championing his deportation efforts and mocking his Democratic political opponents. But he also touted his signature tariff policies as critical to igniting a wave of economic growth — and luring manufacturers back to the US.

“They all want to come back to Michigan and build cars again. You know why? Because of our tax and tariff policy,” Trump said.

The event marked the fabled benchmark of early presidential success before an audience caught squarely in the middle of Trump’s campaign to overhaul global trade and rebuild the US industrial base.

If successful, the president’s campaign ultimately could yield new jobs and bolster manufacturing activity for Michigan’s Macomb County and other similar communities that have seen factories close as companies shifted operations overseas.

But Trump’s tool of choice — widespread tariffs on US trading partners — threatens to raise the cost of consumer goods, increasing grocery bills and other household expenses after years of persistently high inflation, and risks tipping the US economy into a recession. Those fears have begun to percolate with US consumer confidence in April hitting a five-year low.

Macomb County — which split 56% for Trump in the 2024 presidential race — is emblematic of many former Democratic, blue-collar strongholds that were receptive to the president’s economic promises on the campaign trail. Winning those areas helped him easily return to the White House, sweeping all seven swing states and securing the popular vote.

Many residents in places such as Macomb County — home to plants tied to General Motors Co. and Stellantis NV — have championed Trump’s aggressive trade policy, seizing on his promises of revitalized domestic manufacturing and the resurgence of good-paying factory jobs.

But automakers are warning that stiff levies could cause plant shutdowns and job losses instead. On Tuesday, hours before the rally, the car companies secured a temporary win. Trump signed directives easing some tariffs, including a two-year reduction in 25% auto parts levies for components used in cars and trucks finished in the US.

“We give them a little time before we slaughter them,” Trump said, casting his changes as “a little flexibility.”

It wasn’t immediately clear whether the change would be enough to restart production halted in the wake of Trump’s earlier import duty announcements. Stellantis had previously paused production to adapt to the changes, causing temporary layoffs in Michigan and Indiana, as well as at a Canadian plant across the Detroit River.

Another potential test case for Trump lies just down the road at Stellantis’ Warren Truck Assembly Pant, where workers build the company’s Jeep Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer SUVs. Sales have been underwhelming, and output was temporarily halted this month because of a shortage of engines, with a restart expected in early May.

The United Auto Workers, whose president Shawn Fain has praised Trump’s automotive tariffs, has pointed to Warren as evidence that Stellantis has capacity to build more cars and trucks in the US — and summon laid-off members back to work.

Doug King, 30-year-old Stellantis employee attending Trump’s rally, said he was excited by the president’s trade vision and believes a boost to US manufacturing will happen “quicker than you think.”

“He doesn’t want to hurt the companies. He’s trying to save the companies,” King said. “He’ll tweak deals — he’ll tweak everything — to make it work.”

Approval Rating

Trump’s 100-day victory lap comes despite polls showing his approval ratings sinking to the lowest level in decades for presidents at this milestone in their terms. Those marks have been driven down over concerns about his handling of the economy and fears of a potential recession.

Just 39% of respondents in an ABC News/Washington Post/Ipsos poll said they approve of Trump’s performance as president, while a CNN survey marked a 41% approval rating.

Immigration remains an area of relative strength for the Republican president who has intensified the government effort to deter border crossings and deport foreign nationals in the US illegally.

Trump’s second term has also been marked by a campaign to rapidly remake the government, with billionaire Elon Musk leading a sweeping effort to slash federal spending and downsize the workforce.

The president has moved at breakneck speed to overhaul federal policy, having issued scores of executive orders setting in motion regulatory shifts and other changes on subjects ranging from appliance standards and artificial intelligence, to communications and coal.

Trump is also presiding over a broad effort to overhaul Washington’s relationships overseas, having renewed his first-term push for European allies to boost NATO contributions, while demanding free passage for US vessels at the Panama Canal, discussing a potential acquisition of Greenland and musing about how Canada should serve as the 51st US state.

Trump’s speech followed a visit to Selfridge Air National Guard Base with Michigan’s Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer. Later this week, the president is set to deliver a commencement address at the University of Alabama.