DOJ drops criminal probe into Fed chair Jerome Powell
· Axios
The Department of Justice said it will drop a criminal probe into Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell on Friday, a sharp pivot in an unprecedented investigation into the nation's top central banker.
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Why it matters: It opens the path for President Trump's pick to lead the Fed to be confirmed to the post after a standoff with Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), who blocked confirmation until the investigation was closed.
What they're saying: "I have directed my office to close our investigation as the IG undertakes this inquiry," the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, Jeanine Pirro, wrote on X.
- "This morning the Inspector General for the Federal Reserve has been asked to scrutinize the building costs overruns – in the billions of dollars – that have been borne by taxpayers," Pirro wrote.
- "The IG has the authority to hold the Federal Reserve accountable to American taxpayers. I expect a comprehensive report in short order and am confident the outcome will assist in resolving, once and for all, the questions that led this office to issue subpoenas."
Flashback: Powell disclosed in January that he received subpoenas seeking records related to the central bank's multibillion-dollar building renovations.
- The government was examining whether Powell had committed fraud and lied to Congress about those renovations.