The Trump administration has renewed its effort to remove Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, just days before the central bank is expected to vote on a crucial interest rate decision, according to a report published by The Associated Press on Sunday.
Trump’s legal team, the report said, has filed a response with the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, arguing that Cook’s attempts to remain in office were “meritless.” The move follows a US federal judge’s earlier ruling that the president’s attempt to remove Cook was illegal, reinstating her to the Fed’s board.
Unprecedented Move by the White House
The latest development marks the first time in the Federal Reserve’s 112-year history that a sitting US president has tried to fire a Fed governor. While the Fed is designed to operate independently, Trump’s legal team has, time and again, insisted that the president has the authority to act in this regard.
“The public and the executive share an interest in ensuring the integrity of the Federal Reserve,” the filing read, per AP. “And that requires respecting the president’s statutory authority to remove governors ‘for cause’ when such cause arises.”
Allegations of Mortgage Misrepresentation
According to the report, the Trump administration’s case rests on allegations that Cook misrepresented her housing situation. Bill Pulte, whom Trump had appointed to the housing finance agency that oversees Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, accused Cook of claiming two different homes as her primary residence – one in Atlanta and another in Ann Arbor, Michigan, both of which were reportedly purchased in June 2021.
Pulte eventually filed a criminal referral to the Department of Justice (DOJ), which has since launched an investigation. Trump cited these claims to justify firing Cook “for cause.“
However, documents cited by the Associated Press show that Cook referred to the Atlanta condo as a “vacation home“ in a loan estimate and as a “second home“ on a separate federal form, which observers say potentially weakens the fraud allegations.
Fed‘s Rate Vote Looms
Notably, the legal tug-of-war comes just ahead of the Federal Reserve‘s meeting this week, where officials are expected to vote on whether to cut interest rates by a quarter point.
Cook has sued to block her firing and continues to assert that removing a governor without sufficient cause could destabilise the economy.
