Prosecutors from the office of US Attorney Jeanine Pirro attempted to make an unannounced inspection of the construction work for the Federal Reserve’s headquarters renovation.
The Wall Street Journal, sourcing its coverage from an unnamed “person familiar with the matter” and a letter that was not made public, reports two prosecutors and a criminal investigations agent arrived at the central bank on Tuesday and spoke with construction workers before being turned away because they lacked preclearance to enter. The prosecutors were told to contact to the Fed’s legal staff.
Robert Hur, an outside attorney representing the Fed, sent a letter to Pirro’s office criticizing the visit while pointing out that a federal judge had blocked her efforts to issue subpoenas to the central bank and its chairman, Jerome Powell.
“Should you wish to challenge that finding, the courts provide an avenue for you; it is not appropriate for you to try to circumvent it,” Hur wrote. “I ask that you commit not to seek to communicate with my client outside the presence of counsel.”
Pirro’s office has been maneuvering to launch a criminal probe into Powell over testimony he gave last summer before a Senate hearing on the cost overruns on the $2.5 billion renovation project.
“Any construction project that has cost overruns of almost 80% over the original construction budget deserves some serious review,” Pirro said in a statement. “And these people are in charge of monetary policy in the United States?”
This incident could work against the Trump administration’s efforts secure Kevin Warsh as Powell’s successor. Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) has vowed to block Warsh’s confirmation unless the probe into Powell was dropped; the Senate Banking Committee will begin the confirmation hearing on April 21.
Powell, whose term ends on May 15 but could remain as a member of the Fed’s board of governors through 2028, stated he would not leave the Fed while the probe was active.
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