I wish we could fire this guy, but we can’t. President Trump can’t do it, nor can Congress, except “for cause.” Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is here to stay, despite tensions between him and the White House over interest rates. Powell refuses to cut them, though he can and should. There was speculation that Trump drafted a letter that would potentially initiate a pressure campaign to force Powell's resignation.
He dispelled that this week, admitting that Powell isn’t going anywhere unless there’s fraud, a reference to the $2.5 billion renovation project of the Federal Reserve building. Powell also received a letter from Russell Vought, Director of the Office of Management and Budget, regarding the renovation project. The Fed chair had ten days to respond.
Well, he’s done so (via CNN):
Powell said in his response late Thursday that the renovation and its financing have always had careful oversight from the central bank’s board and its own watchdog. He added that the Fed is “not generally subject to the direction” of the National Capital Planning Commission, a body that oversees construction projects for the federal government. Powell said the Fed voluntarily opted to collaborate with the NCPC.
“We have taken great care to ensure the project is carefully overseen since it was first approved by the Board in 2017,” Powell wrote.
Additionally, Powell said upgrades that were reflected in official planning documents submitted to the NCPC in 2021 were later taken out, but the Fed didn’t need to resubmit paperwork because they weren’t “substantial.”
The changes were instead “intended to simplify construction and reduce the likelihood of further delays and cost increases,” Powell wrote. “The Board does not regard any of these changes as warranting further review.”
In his letter, Powell noted that both buildings needed “significant structural repairs and other updates… including the removal of asbestos and lead contamination, complete replacement of antiquated systems such as electrical, plumbing, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning, as well as fire detection and -2- suppression systems.”
Vought is one of several officials in the Trump administration to criticize the rising costs of repair and renovation work on two major buildings in the Fed complex, seemingly as a pretext to justify firing the Fed chair.
That hasn’t stopped others from trying to boot Powell. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) thinks he perjured himself over the project:
I am criminally referring Jerome Powell to the DOJ to investigate perjury regarding his crazy $2.5BN building.
— Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (@RepLuna) July 17, 2025
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