Jerome Powell: a criminal subpoena, and a judge's finding of 'no evidence... other than displeasing the president'
After a year-long public campaign by Trump to pressure the Federal Reserve into cutting interest rates, federal prosecutors in Washington opened a criminal investigation in November 2025 into Fed Chair Jerome Powell over his June 2025 congressional testimony regarding cost overruns on the Fed's roughly $2.5 billion headquarters renovation, examining whether he made false or misleading statements to Congress. U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro approved grand jury subpoenas issued January 10, 2026, reportedly without first notifying the White House, AG Bondi, or Deputy AG Todd Blanche.
Powell publicly disclosed the subpoenas himself on January 11, calling the renovation-cost pretext exactly that, a pretext, and stating in a video message that 'the threat of criminal charges is a consequence of the Federal Reserve setting interest rates based on our best assessment of what will serve the public, rather than following the preferences of the president.' Three former Fed chairs, Greenspan, Bernanke, and Yellen, issued a joint statement condemning what they called Trump's 'prosecutorial attacks' on the central bank's independence; markets sold off over the following two days amid investor concern about Fed independence.
In March 2026, Judge James Boasberg quashed Pirro's subpoenas, writing that 'the government has offered no evidence whatsoever that Powell committed any crime other than displeasing the president.' Pirro said she would appeal. In April 2026 DOJ closed its criminal investigation of Powell and referred the matter to the Federal Reserve's Inspector General; no charges were filed. The episode followed, by months, Trump's attempted removal of Fed Governor Lisa Cook (WLE-09) on a parallel theory.
- Jerome Powell (Fed Chair)
- US Attorney Jeanine Pirro (D.C.)
- William Pulte (originating referral)
- Judge James Boasberg
- Federal investigation into Jerome Powell (full timeline; Boasberg ruling quote; former Fed chairs' statement; market reaction)Wikipedia (compilation; verified fetch) · 2026
- Justice Department opens criminal probe into Fed chair over renovation testimony (Trump's own 'not very good at building buildings' quote; Pulte's role; Powell hires outside counsel)Courthouse News Service · 2026-01-12
- What to Know About the Investigation Into Jerome Powell (timeline; Cook parallel; Comey/James dismissal context)TIME · 2026-01-12
- Powell: DOJ using Fed renovation costs as a pretext for his criminal investigation ($2.6B project cost detail; Sen. Tillis statement)Facilities Dive · 2026-01-12
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