Overview

• On July 2, FHFA Director Bill Pulte formally urged Congress to investigate Jerome Powell for allegedly misleading the Senate about the scope of the Fed’s headquarters overhaul.
• Powell told the Senate Banking Committee there would be no VIP dining rooms, marble finishes, special elevators, water features, beehives, or roof terrace gardens in the project.
• Official planning documents filed with the National Capital Planning Commission in 2021 list all those features and detail a 30% cost increase that drove the budget to $2.5 billion.
• President Trump has criticized Powell’s testimony and hinted at potential dismissal, but a recent Supreme Court ruling shields the Fed chair from removal without cause.
• Lawmakers are intensifying scrutiny of the Fed’s financial stewardship as its balance sheet reflects over $233 billion in accumulated losses recorded as deferred assets.