Republican Lawmaker Seeks Criminal Probe Into Fed Chair Powell Over Perjury Accusations

Republican Anna Luna sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Justice alleging misconduct by Jerome Powell. He may be tried for perjury. She also accused him of deliberately concealing excessive costs related to a construction project. Republican and ally of U.S. President Donald Trump, Anna Paulina Luna, has asked the U.S. Department of Justice to initiate a criminal case against Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, according to an official letter published by Fox News Digital . On June 25, 2025, Powell testified under oath during a hearing before the U.S. Senate Banking Committee. According to Luna, who voted against advancing the crypto legislation, Powell denied that luxury amenities were included in a new plan to redevelop the Eccles Building, the Federal Reserve's headquarters. In her letter, Luna states that Powell ”made materially false statements” regarding: the presence of a VIP dining room, marble finishes, water installations, a roof garden, and modern elevators; the scale and cost of the reconstruction, which increased from $1.9 billion to $2.5 billion. ”According to documents that congressional investigators have already reviewed, the changes were neither minor in nature nor insignificant in scope,” Luna wrote. In addition to making allegedly false statements, the congresswoman emphasized that Powell intentionally presented the updated reconstruction plan as simplified in order to hide excessive spending. She cites letters sent to the director of the Office of Management and Budget, Russell Vought, in which Powell downplayed the scale of the changes. Luna stressed that these statements contradict both: official plans filed with the National Capital Planning Commission, and the original statements of Director Vought himself. According to media reports, Powell denies all allegations of perjury and has initiated an internal investigation into the reconstruction costs. While Luna previously wroteon X (formerly Twitter) that she expects Trump to fire Powell, Trump himself stated back in April that he has no intention of firing the Fed chief. According to the publication, moderate Republicans and Powell supporters say that dismissing the Fed chief would lead to additional instability in various financial markets. However, the conflict between Trump's conservative allies and the Fed chief is escalating, especially amid criticism that Powell has not cut interest rates as much as Trump has demanded.