U.S. President Donald Trump will visit the Federal Reserve on Thursday, the White House said, escalating his pressure campaign against Chairman Jerome Powell. Fed officials headed off the tour with one of their own open to media members earlier in the day.

This is the first time in nearly two decades that an American president will be making an official trip to the central bank. It comes amid scathing White House criticism for cost overruns as the Fed remodels two of its buildings at a price tag that has grown to $2.5 billion.

The White House released a schedule on Wednesday that said Trump would visit the Federal Reserve at 4:00 p.m. ET on Thursday.

Prior to the Trump visit, Fed officials conducted a press tour explaining details as well as providing some information on cost overruns. Central bank staff noted that some of the cost overruns were due to tariffs while others were related to growing costs for materials and labor.

Officials also said constructing a new building would have been less costly than the fixes to the existing structures.

American presidents have traditionally respected the independence of the Fed, which is insulated both in law and in practice from the political whims of elected officials.

Trump’s visit is a remarkable symbolic move on that independence, bringing his drumbeat of criticism over Powell’s refusal to lower interest rates right to the chairman’s doorstep.

Trump has repeatedly criticized Powell for not cutting interest rates, even floating the idea of firing him, despite legal questions over his authority to do so.

“I think he’s done a bad job, but he’s going to be out pretty soon anyway,” Trump told reporters earlier this week at a White House event.

Trump last week sought opinion from a group of Republican lawmakers on firing Powell, before denying he intended to remove the Fed chair. “We’re not planning on doing it … I think it’s highly unlikely, unless he has to leave for fraud.”

Powell has said that his firing is “not permitted under the law.”

While former presidents have criticized prior Fed chairs, no president has attempted to fire the top central banker.

— CNBC’s Christina Wilkie and Jeff Cox contributed to this report.