The Globe and Mail reports in its Thursday, July 17, edition that President Donald Trump discussed firing Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell during a meeting with House Republicans, polling them on the idea. A New York Times dispatch to The Globe reports that while some officials warned that such a move could have severe consequences, Mr. Trump expressed his disdain for Mr. Powell, whom he appointed in 2017. However, Mr. Trump later clarified that he had no immediate plans to proceed with the firing. "I talked about the concept of firing him. I said, 'What do you think?' Almost every one of them said I should," Mr. Trump said, adding, "But I'm more conservative." Mr. Trump has been increasing his angry rhetoric around Mr. Powell for the past several days. He has seized on renovations at the Fed to update a nearly 100-year-old building that will soon accommodate most of the central bank's staff. Asked later whether he would rule out firing the Fed chair, he said, "I don't rule out anything but I think it's highly unlikely unless he has to leave for fraud." Mr. Trump then pointed to the Fed's renovation, saying "I mean it's possible there's fraud involved with the $2.5-billion renovation."