WASHINGTON — Top leaders at the Justice Department are rallying behind a U.S. attorney’s legal fight with Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and the White House isn’t opposing it, amping up the clash with major implications for who will lead the central bank.

President Donald Trump had been open to the idea of dropping the probe into Powell until last Friday, when a judge rejected subpoenas issued to the central bank, according to people familiar with the matter.

But Trump, angered by the ruling and harboring a longstanding belief that the courts are stacked against him, is now believed by aides and allies to support a push to appeal, said the people, who requested anonymity to discuss private talks.

Moments after the subpoenas were blocked last week, U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro announced that she would appeal the court’s decision. Trump has not publicly weighed in on Pirro’s move, but some of his aides were surprised by it.

Justice Department leaders are backing Pirro, according to a person familiar with the matter. The officials see the appeal as necessary to defend the integrity of investigations by prosecutors, said the person, who asked to remain anonymous to discuss internal deliberations.

The judge’s ruling had given the Trump administration a potential off-ramp to end the probe into Powell, allowing the controversy surrounding the investigation to fade away quietly, some of the people said. Instead, continuing the legal battle means Trump will likely have to wait longer for his hand-picked Fed chair nominee, Kevin Warsh, to take over at the central bank.

“The White House remains focused on working with the Senate to swiftly confirm Kevin Warsh as the next chairman of the Federal Reserve,” said White House Spokesman Kush Desai. “Warsh’s academic credentials, private sector success and prior experience on the Fed Board of Governors make him eminently qualified to restore confidence and competence in Fed decision-making.”

Pirro’s office declined to comment about the ongoing legal battle, or if they have discussed the matter with the White House.

Powell said he won’t leave the Fed until the probe is concluded, and even hinted Wednesday he could stick around after that. A key senator has said he will continue to stymie Warsh’s nomination until the investigation is complete.

The DOJ in January issued subpoenas to Powell and the Fed as part of an investigation into cost overruns in a building renovation project. U.S. District Chief Judge James Boasberg ruled last week that the government had provided no evidence to justify the subpoenas, a decision that Pirro lambasted.

“This process has been arbitrarily undermined by an activist judge,” she said in a press conference following the ruling.

Trump on Sunday also lamented Boasberg’s decision to reject the subpoenas, saying he should be removed from cases pertaining to the Trump administration and accusing him of having “Trump Derangement Syndrome.” In the Truth Social post, the president referred to Boasberg as a “Wacky, Nasty, Crooked, and totally Out of Control Judge.”

Next steps

Pirro has asked the judge to reconsider his ruling. The next steps in the process will be for Powell and the central bank to respond to Pirro’s request for reconsideration, and the judge to rule on the motion, according to a person familiar with the matter. If the Justice Department loses, then a formal appeal to the D.C. Circuit can be made.

A Fed spokesperson declined to comment on any potential legal response.

In a filing last week, the Fed’s attorneys said the central bank intends to file an opposition to the motion for reconsideration. The Fed’s understanding, the attorneys added, is that the opposition is due on or before March 27.

The subpoenas are related to the Fed’s ongoing $2.5 billion renovation of its headquarters in Washington, and testimony Powell provided about the construction before the Senate Banking Committee last year. Powell, in an unusually forceful video response to the subpoenas in January, characterized the investigation as motivated by the Fed refusing to set interest rates according to Trump’s preferences.

Powell’s term as chair is set to end in May, but his term on the Fed’s Board of Governors doesn’t expire until 2028. He said Wednesday he would serve as chair in an acting capacity until his successor is confirmed.

“I have no intention of leaving the board until the investigation is well and truly over, with transparency and finality,” he said in a routine press conference following the Fed’s latest rate decision.

The president, who has long implored both Powell and the Fed to cut interest rates aggressively, has said Warsh will be more willing to reduce borrowing costs.

Trump’s attempts to target Powell have raised concerns within Congress that the central bank’s independence could be at risk, a shift that could have major ramifications for the US economy. Senator Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican who holds a key vote on the Senate Banking Committee, has been one of the leading voices against the investigation into Powell, saying he will block Warsh’s nomination until the probe is fully resolved.

“All I want to do is bring out to the public that this guy is incompetent,” Trump said Thursday during a press conference in the Oval Office with Japan’s prime minister. “He’s a very incompetent guy, and he may be a dishonest guy — but somebody’s dishonest, because there’s no way that building can be 3 to 4 billion dollars.”

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(With assistance from Amara Omeokwe and Ben Bain.)

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