Elizabeth Warren, the top Democrat on the Senate banking committee, had some choice words for the Justice Department's decision to drop its criminal investigation into Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. "This is just an attempt to clear the path for Senate Republicans to install President Trump's sock puppet Kevin Warsh as Fed Chair," Warren said in a statement, adding that Jeanine Pirro threatened to restart the inquiry at any time and has yet to drop the investigation into Fed Governor Lisa Cook, whose attempted firing has reached the Supreme Court. "Anyone who believes Donald Trump's corrupt scheme to take over the Fed is over is fooling themselves," she warned.
The Justice Department announced Friday it is taking steps to "strengthen the federal death penalty," including bringing back firing squads and readopting the lethal injection protocol from the first Trump administration, using pentobarbital as the lethal agent. The department is also streamlining processes to expedite death penalty cases, rescinding the Biden-era moratorium on federal executions, and has authorized seeking death sentences against 44 defendants. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche has already authorized death sentences against nine of these defendants.
Meanwhile, Donald Trump's disapproval rating has hit the highest level of his second term, with 58% of Americans disapproving and only 39% approving, according to a New York Times polling average. Dissatisfaction spiked after the US and Israel launched strikes against Iran at the end of February, followed by a hike in gas prices. A Reuters/Ipsos poll found 77% of registered voters blame Trump for surging gasoline prices.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed that Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner will travel to Islamabad, Pakistan tomorrow for further talks with Iran, with VP JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio on standby in the US. Senate Armed Services Committee Chair Roger Wicker declared that "the time is over for negotiations with Iran's regime," urging Trump to direct the military to "finish destroying Iran's conventional military capabilities."
Senate Banking Committee Chair Tim Scott said that despite closing the Powell investigation, "the American people deserve answers about the unacceptable cost overruns at the Federal Reserve" and has invited the central bank's inspector general to present findings within 90 days.
In other news, King Charles and New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani are expected to attend a joint wreath-laying at the 9/11 memorial next Wednesday, according to Politico, noting the irony of Mamdani - son of postcolonial theorist Mahmood Mamdani - greeting a monarch whose forebears oversaw the British Empire. The Justice Department's internal watchdog will also review its handling of records related to financier Jeffrey Epstein, examining compliance with the Epstein Files Transparency Act.