Past three Fed chairs decry 'unprecedented' assault by Trump on Powell

Jan 12 (Reuters) - The past three heads of the U.S. Federal Reserve on Monday joined with other former federal government economic policy leaders in condemning the Trump ?administration's criminal probe of Fed Chair Jerome Powell, likening it ?to the interference with central bank independence more ?often seen in emerging market countries ?with "weak institutions."

"The ?reported criminal inquiry into Federal Reserve Chair Jay Powell is ?an unprecedented attempt to ?use prosecutorial attacks to undermine that independence," a statement signed by former Fed ?chairs Janet Yellen, Ben ?Bernanke ?and Alan Greenspan said. "This is how monetary policy is made in emerging markets with weak ?institutions, with highly negative consequences for inflation and the functioning of their economies more broadly. It has no place in the United States whose greatest strength is the rule ?of ?law, which is at the foundation of our economic success."

The three were joined by ?10 other former top economic policymakers appointed by both Republican and Democratic presidents.

The statement came after Powell issued an extraordinary video statement on Sunday, saying that President Donald Trump's Justice Department had opened a ?criminal inquiry into comments he made to Congress last summer over ongoing building renovations at the Fed's headquarters complex in ?Washington.

(Reporting By Dan Burns; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama )