Trump dealt GOP blows over Powell inquiry amid rising tensions with Congress

Published January 13, 2026 6:00am ET



The Department of Justice’s criminal investigation into Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell has unleashed a flurry of rare rebuke from congressional Republicans and rebellion that could torpedo future Senate confirmations to the nation’s independent central bank.

The saga marks the latest in a string of recent breaks from President Donald Trump by members of his own party as he approaches the one-year mark of his second term, with GOP lawmakers bucking him just days ago on further military action in Venezuela, reinstating expired Obamacare subsidies, and the desire to take Greenland by force.

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