Fed Chair Powell says he's under criminal investigation, won't bow to Trump intimidation

Federal prosecutors have opened a criminal investigation of Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, he confirmed on Sunday evening.

Powell said the probe was the result of the Fed “setting interest rates based on our best assessment of what will serve the public, rather than following the preferences of” President Donald Trump.

“On Friday, the Department of Justice served the Federal Reserve with grand jury subpoenas threatening a criminal indictment related to my testimony before the Senate Banking Committee last June,” Powell said in a video statement tweeted by the Fed’s X account.

“That testimony concerned in part, a multi-year project to renovate historic Federal Reserve office buildings,” he said.

“I have deep respect for the rule of law and for accountability in our democracy. No one, certainly not the chair of the Federal Reserve is above the law, but this unprecedented action should be seen in the broader context of the administration’s threats and ongoing pressure,” Powell said.