The Fed has painted itself into a corner. Sure, by changing the Fed Funds Rate they have a lot of control over short-term interest rates, but they have essentially no control of long-term rates. If long-term rates start rising significantly in credit markets, the U.S. Treasury could quickly have trouble servicing the national debt.
Personally, it appears that Powell is just paying some lip service. His term comes up next year and he is not about to jeopardize the potential of being reappointed by tightening in a weak economy.
If he was smart, he would not try to get reappointed. Move to the private sector and land a cushy job on Wall Street for a year or so. Then retire. Let some other sucker take the fall and blame when things implode.
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