Trump trapped in 'self-defeating fiasco' — and needs to fire aides who put him there: WSJ

The Trump administration's decision to pursue criminal charges against Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell drew sharp criticism from Wall Street Journal editors, who characterized the action as "lawfare for dummies."

In an editorial, the editors described the Department of Justice's prosecution as a "self-defeating fiasco" destined to end badly if allowed to continue.

The charges center on accusations that Powell misled Congress regarding renovations to Federal Reserve office buildings in Washington. The editors argued that recharacterizing routine cost overruns as criminal conduct is absurd.

The editors noted that Trump raised the issue months ago before abandoning it, suggesting internal miscommunication allowed the prosecution to proceed. "Someone forgot to tell the rest of the Administration to let the matter go."

They warned of unintended consequences: "His saner advisers are worried that Wall Street will view this as an attack on the Fed's institutional independence, which it is. Markets reacted calmly on Monday, though the dollar fell and bond yields rose as a bet on more inflation. Whatever you think about Mr. Powell or central-bank independence, the way to change the Fed's legal status is through legislation, not a criminal prosecution of dubious merit."

The investigation has already shown signs of backfiring, with members of Trump's own Republican caucus expressing disapproval, and the editors suggested the president should end it now and do a housecleaning.

"President Trump would do himself and the country a big favor by firing those responsible for this fiasco," they wrote.

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