Powell declined to appear at semi-annual congressional hearings amid DOJ probe

The Justice Department's criminal investigation of the Federal Reserve Chair not only threatens to delay Senate confirmation of President Donald Trump's nominee for the next Fed chair, but it has already disrupted the current Fed chair's semi-annual testimony in Congress. Fed Chair Jerome Powell was due to appear before lawmakers in the House and the Senate for his usual Humphrey-Hawkins testimony last month to report on monetary policy and the bank's other Congressionally mandated functions. He declined. Senator Tim Scott (R-SC) said he had spoken with Powell and encouraged him to appear at the Senate hearing, which ... (full story)