DOJ drops criminal probe into Fed chair Jerome Powell

The Department of Justice said it will drop https://www.axios.com/2026/01/12/fed-powell-trump-inquiry-renovations" target="_blank">a criminal probe into Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell on Friday, a sharp pivot in an unprecedented investigation into the nation's top central banker.

Why it matters: It opens the path for President Trump's pick to lead the Fed to be confirmed to the post after a standoff with Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), who blocked confirmation until the investigation was closed.

What they're saying: "I have directed my office to close our investigation as the IG undertakes this inquiry," the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, Jeanine Pirro, https://x.com/USAttyPirro/status/2047679907312939264?s=20" target="_blank">wrote on X.

• "This morning the Inspector General for the Federal Reserve has been asked to scrutinize the building costs overruns – in the billions of dollars – that have been borne by taxpayers," Pirro wrote.
• "The IG has the authority to hold the Federal Reserve accountable to American taxpayers.

  I expect a comprehensive report in short order and am confident the outcome will assist in resolving, once and for all, the questions that led this office to issue subpoenas."

Flashback: Powell disclosed in January that he received subpoenas seeking records related to the central bank's multibillion-dollar building renovations.

• The government was examining whether Powell had committed fraud and lied to Congress about those renovations.