Stephen Moore, economist and co-author of The Plan to Unleash Prosperity, joined Chicago’s Morning Answer to discuss Bill Gates’ surprising comments downplaying climate catastrophe, the Federal Reserve’s latest interest rate cut, and President Trump’s ongoing trade talks with China.
Moore said Gates’ recent admission that climate change will not lead to “humanity’s demise” marks a major shift from the apocalyptic rhetoric that has driven Western climate policy for decades. “This could be the death knell of climate alarmism,” Moore said. “Gates helped fund the movement, but now he’s admitting the doomsday predictions were wrong. If we had spent even a fraction of that money on eradicating disease or bringing electricity to poor countries, we would have saved millions of lives.”
Moore criticized what he called “eco-supremacy ideology,” where wealthy governments and institutions pressure developing nations to avoid fossil fuels, leaving them dependent on unreliable solar and wind power. “The World Bank and the U.N. told African nations not to build coal or natural gas plants, so they started burning wood,” he said. “It made the air dirtier, not cleaner. That’s how backward this thinking is.”
Turning to economic policy, Moore blasted Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s comments after another quarter-point rate cut, calling them “economic mysticism.” Powell said the labor market slowdown was mostly a supply issue but defended using interest rate cuts to stimulate demand. Moore argued that the Fed’s logic is backward. “If the economy produces more, prices go down, not up,” he said. “Growth doesn’t cause inflation—bad policy does. The Fed’s job is simple: protect the value of the dollar. Powell doesn’t understand that.”
Moore said he hopes President Trump will appoint a new Fed chair who values sound money policy and market stability. “Someone like Larry Kudlow or Steve Forbes would know how to manage the economy properly,” he said. “Powell’s term ends soon, and the country will be better off when he’s gone.”
On foreign trade, Moore praised Trump’s efforts to strengthen relationships in Asia while maintaining pressure on Beijing. He said the administration’s plan to reduce tariffs in exchange for China buying more American goods and limiting fentanyl exports could stabilize global markets—if China follows through. “The problem isn’t what they say they’ll do, it’s what they actually do,” Moore said. “The Chinese government lies, cheats, and steals. You can’t take them at their word.”
Moore concluded that Trump’s economic and foreign policies are grounded in pragmatism and results. “He’s focusing on growth, trade fairness, and American energy independence,” he said. “Meanwhile, the climate alarmists and the central bankers are still chasing their own tails.”