Republican Senator Defends Target of Trump DOJ Investigation: ‘I Will Be Shocked if He Has Done Anything Wrong’

Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) was one of a handful of Republican senators who came to the defense of Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, who is being criminally investigated by the Department of Justice.

The New York Times reported on Sunday that the probe relates to renovations to the Federal Reserve’s headquarters in Washington, D.C., and whether Powell lied to Congress about them. Powell responded by releasing a video saying the renovations and his testimony to Congress are “pretexts” to hide the real reason, which is that the chairman has resisted President Donald Trump’s pleas to dramatically slash interest rates to try to boost economic activity.

On Monday’s edition of The Source on CNN, Kaitlan Collins cited a report that said Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is displeased with the probe because he fears the impact it could have on markets. She then aired clips of Republican senators responding to news of the investigation.

“I know Chairman Powell very well,” Kennedy said. “I will be stunned, I will be shocked if he has done anything wrong.”

Other GOP senators also expressed disapproval.

“I don’t think Jay Powell’s a criminal,” Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-ND) said outside the Capitol on Monday, before nonetheless appearing to accept the premise of the investigation. “If we were to do an indictment on everybody that misled Congress in a hearing, we’d have to build a couple of new federal penitentiaries.”

“I support the independence of the Fed,” said Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT). “And I hope that this investigation wraps up very, very quickly.”

Meanwhile, Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC), who is not running for reelection this year, said the probe is “another example of amateur hour, as far as I’m concerned.”

Powell’s term expires in May.

On Monday, The Wall Street Journal reported that Trump has privately complained about Attorney General Pam Bondi, whom he believes is not prosecuting his political foes aggressively enough.

Watch above via CNN.