Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has been in President Trump’s doghouse lately for his refusal to lower interest rates despite the lack of inflation. He has now tripped over his feet in his testimony to Congress about the plans for revamping the central bank\u2019s Washington headquarters.<\/p>\n
On Monday, The New York Post<\/a> reported:<\/p>\n Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is being accused of lying to Congress after he denied that a $2.5 billion revamp of the central bank\u2019s Washington headquarters will load the facility with lavish amenities \u2014 and some are demanding that he be punished, The Post has learned.<\/strong><\/p>\n Powell called The Post\u2019s exclusive report in April<\/a> about the bloated renovation project \u2014 which led Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) to liken it to the \u201cPalace of Versailles\u201d during a grilling by the Senate Banking Committee last week \u2014 \u201cmisleading and inaccurate.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s no VIP dining room, there\u2019s no new marble. There are no special elevators,\u201d Powell insisted under questioning from the powerful panel on Wednesday. \u201cThere are no new water features, there\u2019s no beehives, and there\u2019s no roof terrace gardens.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n Well, not so fast.<\/p>\n The article continues:<\/p>\n But Powell \u2014 who is meanwhile facing heat from President Trump over a failure to slash interest rates \u2014 directly contradicted the project\u2019s own planning documents, which were signed off on by government pen pushers in 2021 \u2014 and which haven\u2019t been revised since.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cThe private dining rooms on Level 4 (of the Fed\u2019s Eccles building) will be restored,\u201d reads one excerpt from the filing with the National Capital Planning Commission. \u201cThe Governors\u2019 private elevator will be extended to discharge at the dining suite level.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n The documents also expressly mention \u201cvegetated roof terraces\u201d that will welcome \u201curban wildlife and pollinators\u201d as well as new marble and water features.<\/strong><\/p>\n Andrew T. Levin \u2014 a professor of economics at Dartmouth College who served as an economist and advisor to the Fed\u2019s board from 1992 to 2012 \u2014 urged Congress to step in and punish Powell for lying to lawmakers.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cA top Fed official cannot be permitted to make false statements under oath at a congressional hearing. Such statements must be promptly corrected, and in egregious cases, subject to censure by the Senate,\u201d Levin said.<\/strong><\/p>\n …The revelations are controversial at a time when the Fed is struggling with mounting losses, which stand at a total of $233 billion from the past three years.<\/strong><\/p>\n Stay tuned. There may be some changes coming sooner than expected at the fed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has been in President Trump’s doghouse lately for his refusal to lower interest rates despite the lack of inflation. He has now tripped over his feet in his testimony to Congress about the plans for … Continue reading