Politics

A federal judge on Friday reaffirmed his decision to block subpoenas from the Justice Department to the Federal Reserve on the grounds that the probe appears to be driven by a political vendetta, setting the stage for an appeal by the Trump administration.

Chief U.S. District Judge James Boasberg wrote that the question at hand is whether the DOJ is using its investigation into the Fed’s headquarters renovations to pressure Chair Jerome Powell to lower interest rates. His initial ruling last month said there was “abundant evidence” that the probe was aimed at getting Powell either to yield to President Donald Trump’s demands to lower borrowing costs or resign.

In his latest ruling, Boasberg denied the government’s motion to reconsider his decision — a long shot given the high bar for granting such motions — and waved away the government’s argument that the subpoenas were not directly targeted at the central bank chief.

“No matter whom the subpoenas were addressed to, then, it was clear whom they sought dirt on: Powell,” Boasberg wrote.