Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell announced on Friday that he was under investigation, and claimed that President Donald Trump’s administration was using the threat of an indictment to as a punishment for his refusal to lower interest rates at the president’s direction. Powell posted a video in conjunction with a press release on Saturday, explaining the Trump administration’s rationale for launching the probe and then pivoted to say that he believed the real reasons for the investigation were political. WATCH: Video message from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome H. Powell: https://t.co/5dfrkByGyX pic.twitter.com/O4ecNaYaGH — Federal Reserve (@federalreserve) January 12, 2026 “On Friday, the Department of Justice served the Federal Reserve with grand jury subpoenas, threatening a criminal indictment related to my testimony before the Senate Banking Committee last June. That testimony concerned in part a multi-year project to renovate historic Federal Reserve office buildings,” Powell said. “I have deep respect for the rule of law and for accountability in our democracy. No one—certainly not the chair of the Federal Reserve—is above the law,” he added, before turning to suggest that the Trump administration was retaliating against him for refusing to adjust interest rates to the president’s satisfaction. “But this unprecedented action should be seen in the broader context of the administration’s threats and ongoing pressure.” “This new threat is not about my testimony last June or about the renovation of the Federal Reserve buildings. It is not about Congress’s oversight role; the Fed through testimony and other public disclosures made every effort to keep Congress informed about the renovation project,” Powell claimed, arguing that the president was simply using those reasons as cover. “Those are pretexts. The threat of criminal charges is a consequence of the Federal Reserve setting interest rates based on our best assessment of what will serve the public, rather than following the preferences of the President.” “This is about whether the Fed will be able to continue to set interest rates based on evidence and economic conditions—or whether instead monetary policy will be directed by political pressure or intimidation,” he added. “I have served at the Federal Reserve under four administrations, Republicans and Democrats alike. In every case, I have carried out my duties without political fear or favor, focused solely on our mandate of price stability and maximum employment. Public service sometimes requires standing firm in the face of threats. I will continue to do the job the Senate confirmed me to do, with integrity and a commitment to serving the American people.” Trump has repeatedly threatened to either fire Powell or sue him — as recently as late December — and has accused him of “gross incompetence.”

Blake Shelton is defending his marriage to Gwen Stefani. The country music superstar finally opened up about the ongoing rumors that he and his pop-star wife have split after four years of marriage. While speaking to Country Countdown USA on January 10, Blake insisted that his relationship is still going strong. But he admitted that it’s hard not to believe what you see on the internet. Even he can’t “trust anything anymore.” “Starting in October, I think, or maybe November, I started noticing these articles popping up about ‘Blake and Gwen, they’re split up, they’re not even seeing each other anymore, they’re going through a divorce,’” he said. “A week later, a picture comes out of us walking out of the grocery store, ‘Oh, they’re back together again.’” Blake Shelton is Giving Up on the Internet Following Months of Divorce Rumors And being a victim of false news has really made him understand how deceptive the internet is. Blake has a hard time distinguishing truth from fiction, too—even when looking at pictures of himself. “I see pictures of Gwen and I on social media that I really go, ‘that looks so real. But I know I don’t even own that shirt or, ‘Whose car is that?’” he noted. “I don’t believe anything anymore that I see on the internet. I mean, nothing. I just don’t believe it.” Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani began dating in 2015, after meeting on The Voice. They married in 2021 and have since made Blake’s ranch in Tishomingo, Oklahoma, their home with Gwen’s three sons, Kingston, Zuma, and Apollo, whom she shares with her ex-husband, Gavin Rossdale. This story’s featured image is by John Shearer/Getty Images for ACM.

Keanu Reeves is one of those celebrities who doesn’t appear to have let fame get to his head. We can’t remember ever hearing a scathing story about him being rude to a fan or acting like a jerk in public. Instead, those who’ve encountered The Matrix actor always seem to have nice things to say about him. In 1997, Keanu stopped in for a meal at House of Nanking in San Francisco. He took a photo with a young Kathy Fang, who smiled alongside the handsome actor. She never expected to see him again. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Pubity (@pubity) Keanu Reeves Returned to San Francisco Years Later While filming The Matrix Resurrections, Keanu Reeves returned to San Francisco and dined at House of Nanking. While there, he and Kathy posed for an updated photo. But it wasn’t a press op. He didn’t call for anyone to come and see his good deed. Instead, he just quietly ate. “He dropped in unannounced, surprising owner Kathy Fang, and the two recreated a photo they’d taken years earlier. No press, no promo; just Keanu stopping by for the noodles and the memories,” Pubity shared on Instagram. The sweet moment between Keanu Reeves and Kathy Fang touched the hearts of fans who love him for his kindness and humble actions. “I love that 20 years later they still look the same,” someone wrote. “Best human in Hollywood (I wish the others would take note),” another person commented. This person agreed, writing, “Keanu one of those guys you just can’t hate on at all.” A House of Nanking customer shared their experience of seeing the original Keanu Reeves photo. “My wife and I had a 3hr layover in San Francisco and we visited your restaurant. We saw the original photo and were buzzing. To see he visited again is amazing. Also your food was top tier,” they wrote. This story’s featured image is by Antony Jones/Getty Images for Lionsgate U.

The investigation centers around the skyrocketing costs for the renovation of Federal Reserve headquarters

On Friday night's PBS News Hour -- two nights after they devoted nine minutes to recovery efforts on the Los Angeles wildfires without mentioning Mayor Karen Bass, Gov. Gavin Newsom or even the word "Democrats" -- they promoted a new book by MS NOW reporter Jacob Soboroff that mostly blames Donald Trump and Elon Musk for causing the most damage with their "disinformation." Soboroff did throw in the usual doom notes about climate "emergency" to please the PBS audience about the fires, which began in the last days of the Biden presidency: "Changes in the way we live, our infrastructure is falling apart, the global climate emergency, obviously, and the politics of misinformation and disinformation all played a part." The last phrase was all about Trump and Musk. PBS = MS NOW. On Friday's @NewsHour, they promoted Jacob Soboroff's new book on the L.A. wildfires, which he says is all about how Donald Trump & Elon Musk were "pouring rhetorical fuel on the very literal flames of the fire." News by and for Democrats. pic.twitter.com/Uy3M7VUt9J — Tim Graham (@TimJGraham) January 12, 2026 BENNETT: Let's talk more about that because fires are so often a climate story, but, this one, this became a political story in large part because of the misinformation. How did that change the trajectory of the response? SOBOROFF: It's so true. And I think when people read "Firestorm," it reads like at times a sci-fi thriller, but it is as true of a true story as it possibly can be. It is a minute-by-minute account of the lived experience of so many people. And that lived experience includes being confused by misinformation and disinformation that was coming out of not only local leaders and the inability for the local infrastructure to have emergency alert systems that worked to get people information and appropriate amount of time to evacuate. But the president-elect of the United States, Donald Trump -- and I don't think this is a secret or a surprise to anybody -- was sending out messages on his platform, TRUTH Social, about the causes of the fire that were based in no reality whatsoever. You remember that he said there's a mystical tap that we can turn on and flow water down from the Pacific Northwest to stop the fire. He blamed "Gavin Newscum" and the mayor of Los Angeles, Karen Bass. This book doesn't absolve any official from what could have made these fires different, but it does, I think, point a finger at particularly Donald Trump and Elon Musk for, from the sidelines, making -- pouring rhetorical fuel on the very literal flames of the fire.  Bennett didn't ask for specifics. He then prompted Soboroff to discuss his reporter-source relationship with Katie Miller, who asked him to check on the house of her husband Stephen Miller’s parents (it was gone). He added: “within minutes of going to do that for her, I noticed that her boss, Donald Trump, and her future boss, Elon Musk at DOGE, were spreading this misinformation and disinformation that was hurting people, including her own in-laws.” Newsom was criticized in passing: "And while it was fast, and President Trump and Gavin Newsom both liked to tout the speed with which these neighborhoods were cleaned up, there has been testing that shows that there are still elevated levels of toxic materials there, which are giving people pause about moving back, not just now, but if they will ever go back." Bennett, who worked with Soboroff at NBC/MSNBC for four years, closed out the segment: "The book is Firestorm: The Great Los Angeles Fires and America's New Age. Jacob Soboroff, always great to speak with you, friend."

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