The U.S. Department of Justice has dropped its criminal investigation into Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell over cost overruns at the central bank's headquarters renovation. The move, announced by U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro on Friday, shifts scrutiny to the Fed's inspector general and clears a path for Senate confirmation of President Trump's nominee Kevin Warsh. The probe had been criticized as an effort to pressure Powell amid disputes over interest rates.
The investigation focused on a renovation project at the Federal Reserve's Washington, D.C., headquarters, where costs rose from $1.9 billion to $2.5 billion due to issues like excess lead, asbestos, and inflation. Federal District Judge James Boasberg ruled in March that the probe was an improper attempt to coerce Powell into lowering interest rates or resigning, quashing initial subpoenas. Despite Pirro's vows to appeal and continue, the Justice Department closed the criminal case after Senator Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) threatened to block Warsh's nomination unless it ended. Tillis called the investigation 'bogus' and praised Warsh's credentials at a Senate Banking Committee hearing earlier this week, saying, 'You have extraordinary credentials. They’re impeccable.'
