There’s been a bit of a building boom going on in D.C. that’s kind of run under the radar with all the sonic booms of the Trump administration reverberating in the air overhead, drowning out the sound of elven hammers hard at work.
Back in April, the NY Post broke the story that the Federal Reserve Chairman, who is so worried about inflation and the debt that he can’t lower interest rates to make your life easier, didn’t have a problem greenlighting a renovation of his admittedly again digs over at the Fed.
The problem is that what Chairman Powell had in mind turned out to be more of something that got dubbed a ‘Palace of Versailles’ type home remodel, which, in this day and age, caused a few eyebrows to hit hairlines. Particularly since the American taxpayer will wind up footing the bill for it.
The Federal Reserve is pushing ahead with an eye-watering $2.5 billion revamp of its Washington, DC HQ despite mounting losses — as one ex-official accused central bankers of behaving like French royalty.
The lavish project, first rubber-stamped by government pen-pushers in 2021, is now effectively being subsidized by American taxpayers because the Fed has not made a profit since 2022.
“The Federal Reserve is building the Palace of Versailles on the National Mall,” said Andrew T. Levin, professor of economics at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire, referring to the long-deposed French monarchy’s official residence just outside Paris.
…Costs have ballooned by nearly 32% from a 2019 estimate of $1.9 billion to complete with all of the work set to be finished in 2027.
Planning documents posted online blame “significant increases” in the cost of building materials that “far exceed standard cost escalations.”
Well…hang on a minute here.
Russell Vought, Office of Management and Budget Director, sent Powell a letter at the end of June saying exactly that when the White House was informed that the planned renovations were on track.
…“The President is extremely troubled by your management of the Federal Reserve System,” Vought told Powell in the letter. “Instead of attempting to right the Fed’s fiscal ship, you have plowed ahead with an ostentatious overhaul of your Washington DC headquarters.”
The letter took direct aim at Powell’s June 25 testimony before the Senate Banking Committee, in which the Fed chairman attempted to deny the luxurious upgrades and called The Post report “misleading and inaccurate.”
Powell answered in a huffy note back that the Post report of excesses was erroneous, and that there was, for example, no beehives or new marble. So perhaps the administration should leave him alone.
Powell sort of stepped in it.
…“There’s no VIP dining room. There’s no new marble. There are no special elevators,” Powell insisted during the hearing. “There are no new water features, there’s no beehives, and there’s no roof terrace gardens.”
The OMB’s letter to Powell, however, stated that the project does, in fact, include “rooftop terrace gardens, VIP private dining rooms and elevators, water features, premium marble, and much more.”
The upgraded facility also will give employees an average of 512 square feet of office space — more than triple the OMB’s recommended 150 square feet.
Powell had also testified that the 90-year-old Eccles building “was not really safe” and that it it “really needed a serious renovation, had never had one” — an assertion that the OMB refutes by noting that the building underwent a comprehensive renovation between 1999 and 2003.
Never go in against a Trump administration official without your ducks stuffed and firmly standing in a row. You think these arrogant asses would learn after a while.
All you do is make them mad because you lied, or look like you were trying to wiggle out of telling the truth. And that tends to bring the hammer down every single time.
These renovations are proving to be no exception as there are legitimate questions based on Powell’s own words whether the redo is out of compliance and ‘orders of magnitude’ more expensive than comparable government building projects.
YOICKS
…Vought’s letter said the costly revamp may now be in violation of the National Capital Planning Act (NCPA), which mandates that federal development projects in Washington receive approval from the National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC).
According to the letter, Powell’s own statements suggest that the project may now deviate significantly from the plan approved by the NCPC in September 2021.
“Your testimony appears to reveal that the project is out of compliance with the approved plan with regard to major design elements,” Vought wrote.
“This would bring the project outside of the NCPC’s approval and thus in violation of the NCPA, and require the Fed to immediately halt construction and obtain a new approval from the NCPC before proceeding any further.”
Not to mention, Trump can’t stand this guy. Why on earth wouldn’t Powell just do his job as pathetically as he has been? Why further antagonise the crap out of a president who wants him gone over something so disgustingly elite that it just reeks of patrician swamp indulgence?
While most Americans can’t even afford a home thanks to sky-high interest rates…
Jerome Powell and the Federal Reserve just approved $2.3 BILLION to renovate their office.
Let that sink in.
They’re not building from scratch. They’re remodeling.
For perspective — a brand new…
— Ryan Stewman 🇺🇸 (@ryanstewman) July 3, 2025
…For perspective — a brand new Universal Studios theme park is being built near my house.
Total cost: $550 million.
That’s less than a quarter of what the Fed is spending to upgrade their office.
What in the actual hell could cost $2.3B in a remodel?
This is theft in plain sight.
End the Fed.
It’s dogpile time.
Trump is blasting him for the building.
President Trump: “Jerome Powell’s been very bad for our country. We should have the lowest interest rate on earth, and we don’t… and yet, he’s spending $2.5 billion rebuilding the Fed, the Federal Reserve building.”pic.twitter.com/odGINkJow2
— Thomas Sowell Quotes (@ThomasSowell) July 14, 2025
And Bill Pulte, the new Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (think Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, among other things), has called for a congressional investigation into Powell and the renovations.
As if he sensed he might be in some hot water, Powell’s suddenly popped up a Q&A page about the redo on the Fed’s website.
What are the goals of the project?
The Federal Reserve takes seriously the responsibility to be a good steward of public resources. The project will reduce costs over time by allowing the Board to consolidate most of its operations. It involves a complete overhaul and modernization that preserves two historic buildings that have not been comprehensively renovated since their construction in the 1930s and includes:
Yeah. Okay.
And he’s doing some preemptive striking of his own by asking for an Inspector General Review (not investigation) of the project.
🚨 BREAKING: Fed Chair Jerome Powell asks for an Inspector General REVIEW of his $2.5 BILLION renovation of the Fed building, which has been slammed by Trump and his Housing Director Bill Pulte, per Axios.
Jerome is feeling the pressure as he costs our country hundreds of… pic.twitter.com/ApeLzIeICT
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) July 14, 2025
OKAY
No one’s falling for the IG on the rooftop terrace trick.
Pulte’s calling for him to resign, and last night the FHFA director predicted that the building ‘fiasco’ would put paid to Powell’s tenure as Fed chief.
I actually think, and I’ll make a prediction, Laura. I think that this building fiasco that Jay Powell has grossly mismanaged, will be the end of his career…
Vought’s OMB is now breathing down Powell’s neck, too, thanks to his testimony.
Jerome Powell, AKA “TOO LATE,” is spending billions renovating the Fed’s HQ.
In his recent testimony, he slipped up and revealed he might also be violating the law.
The Trump Administration is demanding answers, and we’re going to hold him accountable. 🧵 pic.twitter.com/cDsMKGrVM8
— Office of Management and Budget (@WHOMB) July 10, 2025
It’s bad enough when you’re bad enough that there isn’t a soul on your side, but you know you’re doing the right thing.
When what you’re trying to do is already indefensible and you double down…badly?
WOOF
Katie, bar the door when these hounds come for you. They hunt in a pack.
