There is a two-step, proven pattern to Donald Trump's weaponization of the Department of Justice in the first year of his second term as president: First, he will overreach, and then he will fail.

Jerome Powell, chair of the Federal Reserve, is just the latest subject of Trump's rage for retribution.

Powell, on Jan. 11, announced that the Department of Justice on Jan. 9 served the Federal Reserve "with grand jury subpoenas, threatening a criminal indictment" for his Senate testimony in June about cost overruns for renovations of some office buildings.

The Fed chair called that a "pretext" for the real motive – not doing what Trump wanted.

"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," Powell said in a statement.

This criminal investigation looks doomed for failure, just like Trump's illegitimate prosecutions of two other perceived foes: former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James.

But Trump won't have to wait for this case to sputter and die in court if criminal charges are filed against Powell. He has already sparked a political fiasco, with serious Republican blowback brewing in Congress.

A rational........

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