WASHINGTON, April 14 (Reuters) – Prosecutors from U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro’s office paid a surprise visit to the Federal Reserve’s headquarters renovation project on Tuesday, as the Trump administration continues its pressure campaign on the central bank.
The unscheduled visit was confirmed by a spokesperson for Mr. Pirro’s office and was first reported by the Wall Street Journal.
After speaking with the construction workers, two of Mr. Pirro’s representatives were told they could not access the site without prior permission and were given contact information for the Federal Reserve’s legal staff, the newspaper said.
President Donald Trump is waging an aggressive campaign against Fed officials, including Fed Chairman Jerome Powell, whose term ends in May, with the goal of lowering interest rates. The campaign sparked political protests and court challenges.
The Justice Department is investigating Powell for overseeing renovations to the central bank’s headquarters in the capital.
A federal judge found the investigation was an elaborate sham designed to pressure Powell to lower interest rates or resign, but the department said it would appeal.
Former Federal Reserve chairmen and former government economic policy leaders from both the Republican and Democratic parties are becoming increasingly wary of investigations into the Trump administration.
There was no immediate comment from the Fed. The newspaper reported that Robert Herr, the Fed’s outside lawyer, objected to Tuesday’s visit in a letter to Pirro’s office.
Heo allegedly said that prosecutors showed up at the construction site “without prior notice,” asked for an inspection, and said they wanted to check on the progress of the renovation project.
Central bank independence in setting interest rates to control inflation is considered a central tenet of prudent economic policy, insulating monetary policymakers from short-term political considerations and allowing them to focus on long-term efforts to stabilize prices.
Former Federal Reserve President Kevin Warsh has been nominated by President Trump to head the central bank.
(Reporting by Kanishka Singh and Jasper Ward in Washington; Editing by Ross Colvin and Thomas Derpinhaus)
