The Justice Department's investigation into the Federal Reserve would not have happened "if they had just responded to our outreach," U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro said.
Pirro made the case in a pointed Monday night post on X, saying her office repeatedly tried to engage the Fed over alleged cost overruns and Fed Chairman Jerome Powell's congressional testimony and got nowhere.
"The United States Attorney's Office contacted the Federal Reserve on multiple occasions to discuss cost overruns and the chairman's congressional testimony, but were ignored, necessitating the use of legal process — which is not a threat," Pirro wrote.
She also pushed back on claims that prosecutors were escalating the situation.
"The word 'indictment' has come out of Mr. Powell's mouth, no one else's," Pirro wrote, adding, "None of this would have happened if they had just responded to our outreach."
Pirro's comments came after Powell said the Justice Department served the Federal Reserve with grand jury subpoenas tied to his testimony before the Senate Banking Committee in June where he addressed the estimated $2.5 billion renovation of the Fed's Washington headquarters.
Powell suggested the action was part of broader political pressure on the central bank, saying it raised questions about whether monetary policy would be set by "evidence and economic conditions" or "political pressure or intimidation."
But Pirro framed the matter as basic accountability, the kind that ordinary Americans and small businesses face every day when projects go over budget and officials have to answer for it.
"This office makes decisions based on the merits, nothing more and nothing less," she wrote. "We agree with the chairman of the Federal Reserve that no one is above the law, and that is why we expect his full cooperation."
Conservatives have long argued that Washington's most powerful institutions often operate with little real oversight, especially when it comes to spending.
The renovation project has become a flash point as families continue to feel squeezed by high prices and elevated borrowing costs — the very issues the Fed is tasked with managing — while taxpayers watch yet another major government-adjacent project balloon beyond projections.
President Donald Trump, who appointed Powell in 2017, told NBC News he was not aware of the investigation but criticized Powell's performance, calling him "certainly not very good at the Fed, and he's not very good at building buildings."
Trump has repeatedly criticized Powell in the past over interest rate policy.
The Hill reported some Republicans cautioned against the probe, with Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., and Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, raising concerns about Fed independence, while other lawmakers and economic figures criticized the Justice Department's move.
Still, Pirro's message is that the Fed is not entitled to ignore prosecutors and then cry foul when subpoenas arrive. In her view, simple responsiveness could have avoided escalation, and Americans deserve straight answers when powerful officials and multibillion-dollar projects are involved.
Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
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