Trump adviser Kudlow knocks Fed officials as part of the ‘deep state’

White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow on Thursday took a shot at members of the Federal Reserve board as part of the “deep state.”

“I don’t want to get into a lot of Fed bashing,” Kudlow told CNBC in an interview from the White House lawn. “They do the best they can. Their models are highly flawed. The ‘deep state’ board staff, of course, has not been helpful — oops, did I say that?”

Kudlow added that, despite the bank’s economic models, “the Fed is moving us in the right direction.”

Kudlow’s comments echo the Trump administration’s frequent attacks on the Fed and its chairman, Jerome Powell, over interest rates amid trade tensions with China and other countries.{mosads}

President Trump has blasted the central bank for not slashing interest rates more quickly. Powell has cut rates twice this year but Trump has said the bank has not moved quickly and aggressively enough. Last month, Trump lashed out at Powell saying the bank chief had “no guts, no sense, no vision” shortly after the Fed cut rates for the second consecutive time this year.

Last week, after striking a partial trade deal with China, Trump told reporters that the Fed “should cut rates regardless.”

“We have a great economy, but we have a Federal Reserve that’s not in step with the rest of the world,” he said.

Trump and his supporters often refer to the so-called deep state, claiming there are officials within the government working to undermine the president and his administration.