Transcript: Christine Lagarde, president of the European Central Bank, “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” Feb. 22, 2026

The following is the transcript of an interview with Christine Lagarde, president of the European Central Bank, that aired on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” on Feb. 22, 2026.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Welcome back to ‘Face The Nation.’ We are now joined by the head of the European Central Bank, Christine Lagarde. The ECB sets interest rates for many countries in the European Union, which is America’s largest trading partner. It’s nice to have you here.

CHRISTINE LAGARDE: Good to be here, Margaret.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, especially at this time when there’s confusion about what’s going to happen next with world trade. I saw that the Chancellor of Germany, Germany is the largest economy in Europe, came out and said, prices hurt everyone, the biggest poison in the European and US economy is this uncertainty about costs. Did you hear and get clarification from Ambassador Greer about what happens next?

CHRISTINE LAGARDE: I’m not so sure. And I’m telling you, I think, it’s very important that all people in trade, outside of the United States, but also in the United States, have clarity about the future of the relationship. Because, you know, it’s like driving. You want to know the rules of the road before you get into the car. It’s the same with trade. It’s the same with investments. You want to know what the rules are, and you want to avoid having to, you know, go back and look for the prices back. Because this is not just the purpose of people doing business. They want to do business. They don’t want to get involved in legal cases. So I hope that it will be clarified, and it will be studied enough, so that we do not have more challenges, and the proposals will be in accordance with the constitution, in accordance with the law.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, what you just said sounded very similar to what one of the justices suggested, I think it was Justice Gorsuch saying, like, that’s why there’s a call to put things in the law so that there’s clarity in advance planning. I haven’t heard Ambassador Greer say with certainty that they’re going to try to put any of these things into law, they’re going to use the existing regulations, that’s what I’ve heard him say. But he seemed confident that existing trade deals would hold. The EU and the US have a deal, a 15% lower price in the latest trade deal. But there is an urgent meeting about all this tomorrow. Do you see that disturbing that this could actually be dangerous?

CHRISTINE LAGARDE: I am no longer the trade minister. I used to. So I don’t know what the outcome of those meetings will be, but it’s not like it was a straight 15% of them all. There are also exemptions, there are carve outs, there are areas where there is no tariff. So I think if it shakes the balance all the traders are used to because they continue to trade after the April decisions and the July trade deal between the US and Europe, but the rescheduling will bring disruption to the business for sure.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, when you were last year in October, and I asked you about the impact of spending, you said that the global economy had not yet felt the pain. Did we avoid that pain? Did the buyer avoid the pain?

CHRISTINE LAGARDE: I don’t think consumers were avoiding pain. And I think there are a lot of studies being done now to determine what the impact is and where the cost burden is. And I think that while some exporters have suffered, most of it has been borne by US exporters and ultimately, US consumers, because US exporters have squeezed their margins a little bit to absorb some of these additional costs because of costs. But there’s a point where you don’t squeeze your margins too much, and you have to pass it on to buyers. I think this is who we are. We’re starting to see, and, you know, a lot of studies and very serious people are looking at this. We try to look at the data ourselves to make sure what impact it has on our trade and economy. And this is an ongoing process that will obviously be disrupted by current developments.

MARGARET BRENNAN: I want to ask you about, as a central banker, your thoughts on some of the populism we’re seeing right now. He played a leading role in defending Chairman Powell, Jerome Powell, here in the United States after President Trump’s Justice Department launched an investigation into him. He said it is important to maintain the independence of central banks with full respect for the law and democratic accountability. We know Powell will be replaced in May by Kevin Warsh, someone you know from your time as commerce secretary. Do you believe that he himself can withstand political pressure from the President?

CHRISTINE LAGARDE: First of all, I have great respect, as you know, for Powell, for Kevin Warsh and for the chairs in the past, and I’m very proud to receive the award tomorrow on behalf of Paul Volcker. You know, with monetary policy, the rule of law is very important, and central bank independence is very important. We’ve seen in history, we’ve seen in books, we’ve seen, just, anything that analyzes the work of a central bank, be it the Fed, be it the ECB, that independence is very important. Why is that? Because you don’t want someone who sets interest rates, is in charge of price stability and financial stability, you don’t want that person to be under political influence. And the decisions we make often don’t affect us right away. They produce results 6, 12, 18 months, sometimes two years down the road. In the meantime, political life goes on, and we must, somehow, be protected from that. That is why many bankers around the world are signing this support for central bank independence as used by Chairman Powell.

MARGARET BRENNAN It was a surprising statement, because usually banks want to get out of that limelight, but you see the real danger here. And- and there are concerns about this populist wave, even in France, the far right could win the French elections next year. I have to ask you about these reports that you may leave the ECB early because of, basically, the insurance policy of allowing the French president to choose a successor, rather than the right leader to help choose the head.

CHRISTINE LAGARDE: I am interested in the mission, and my goal is price stability, financial stability. I want the euro, whose guardians we are, to be strong and ready for the future. I think we have achieved a lot. Inflation is on target, growth is good, not stellar, but solid, at 1.5%, and unemployment is at an all-time low. But we need to put all that together. And my premise is that it will take until the end of my time. And voters in any country in the world make their own decisions, and those decisions must be respected.

MARGARET BRENNAN: So, no – we’re not responding to you leaving early, but you think – it sounds like it’s going to take more work until your eight-year term ends–

CHRISTINE LAGARDE: I’m not done yet.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Right before I release you. How challenging is it to maintain power when Russia and China try to avoid European sanctions and American sanctions by using their money? Is the West losing its power as we head into the war in Ukraine?

CHRISTINE LAGARDE: I think our responsibility is to make sure that our currencies are strong, that our payment systems are strong and independent, and this is certainly something that we will continue to do for the reasons that you mentioned.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Christine Lagarde, thank you very much for your time this morning. We will be right back.