Stocks drop after MAGA opens criminal probe into Fed chair Jerome Powell
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Archived from the IMDb Discussion Forums — The Soapbox
sheetsadam1 — 2 months ago(January 12, 2026 03:40 PM)
https://thehill.com/business/5684386-trump-investigation-federal-reserve/
The stock market opened with losses Monday in the wake of the Trump administration opening a criminal probe into Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down roughly 300 points shortly after trading began for the first time since news broke of the investigation.
Powell announced Sunday evening that he and the central bank received subpoenas related to renovations of its Washington, D.C., headquarters and Powell’s June testimony before the Senate Banking Committee on the matter.
President Trump had recently threatened to bring charges against Powell for “incompetence” in managing the Fed’s renovations, despite seeming to move on from the issue after a July tour of the bank’s facilities.
Powell, however, said the renovations-related charges were a “pretext” for Trump to ramp up his pressure on the Fed over its handling of interest rates.
“The threat of criminal charges is a consequence of the Federal Reserve setting interest rates based on our best assessment of what will serve the public, rather than following the preferences of the President,” Powell said.
“This is about whether the Fed will be able to continue to set interest rates based on evidence and economic conditions—or whether instead monetary policy will be directed by political pressure or intimidation.”
News of the probe spurred bipartisan condemnation, with Democrats and Republicans siding with Powell in defense of the Fed’s independence.
“If there were any remaining doubt whether advisers within the Trump Administration are actively pushing to end the independence of the Federal Reserve, there should now be none. It is now the independence and credibility of the Department of Justice that are in question,” Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) said in a statement.
Draft Barron Trump -
元才 — 2 months ago(January 12, 2026 04:07 PM)
End of day Friday, January 10, 2026, gain 238 points (or +0.48%)
Start of day Monday, January 12, 2026, fell 107 points (or -0.2%)
As of this moment (Later on Monday) gain 355 points (or +0.72%)
So it's set to close on another record high again
Although I'm sure Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell would rather it didn't though
Where are you in the whole give money to those who can't repay it and repeat 2008 thing?
It's a very DEMOCRATIC way of holding onto people's money for their futures -
soapbox original gangster — 2 months ago(January 12, 2026 09:57 PM)
i suspect that the funds for the renovations were approved by congress; or if not required by Congress, then the requisite oversight and procedures followed to make it all nice and government legal.
Trump NEEDS interest rates low because he must have 100smillions if not a few billion in loans nearing repayment and the lower interest rates benefit him directly. super low interest rates will fuel reigniting inflation for the rest of us, and since he's immune from everyday expenses, **** the peasants!
trump has bloviated mightily about interest rates at or below 1% for years because he wants to lower the payments on our federal debt. that is a good thing, and if trump hadnt overseen the largest increases in that debt then his cry for reform would ring true.
my friend said Powell himself took to socmed to defend himself, so I think we have a person with backbone and principle taking on trump.Fed reserve is mostly apolitical and has had 70 years of independence from both congress and Exec branches, now is not the time to let some feeble-minded pre-dementia case like trump to radically alter that independence into bootlicking submission.