Central Bankers Used to Keep Out of Politics. Not Any More
Policymakers more accustomed to fighting inflation are now finding themselves staring down politicians in a high-wire contest for their independence
Christine Lagarde, left, and Donald Trump at the G-7 Leaders Summit in Canada in 2018. Lagarde has been frank about her fears of a possible Trump reelection.
Photographer: Cole Burston/BloombergBundesbank board member Sabine Mauderer stepped uneasily from side to side as she waited to speak.
From the stage she could watch the crowds of anti-fascist demonstrators filling Frankfurt’s central square and hear the chants that have rung out across Germany in response to the rise of the far-right AfD. Such rallies have become common this year after a surge in its support. But for a central banker to speak at one is unusual, still, and risky.