Cook

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Wednesday put off a decision on whether President Trump can fire Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook and said it would hear arguments on the case in January.

The court’s action allows Cook to remain in her position, and it prevents Trump from taking majority control of the historically independent central bank board.

Last month, the president said he fired Cook “for cause,” citing mortgage documents she signed in 2021 confirming that two different properties were her primary residence.

But the flap over her mortgages arose as Trump complained that the Federal Reserve Board, including Cook, had not lowered interest rates to his satisfaction.

“We will have a majority very shortly,” Trump said after he fired Cook.

In September, Trump appointed Stephen Miran, the chair of of his White House Council of Economic Advisers, to serve a temporary term on the seven-member Federal Reserve Board. He joined two other Trump appointees.

Congress wrote the Federal Reserve Act of 1913 intending to give the central bank board some independence from politics and the current president.

Its seven members are appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate, and they serve staggered terms of 14 years, unless “removed for cause by the president.”

The law does not define what amounts to cause.

President Biden appointed Cook to a temporary term in 2022 and to a full term a year later.

In August, Bill Pulte, Trump’s director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, alleged that Cook committed mortgage fraud when she took out two housing loans in 2021. One was for $203,000 for a house in Ann Arbor, Mich., and the second was for $540,000 for a condo in Atlanta. In both instances, he said she signed a loan document saying the property would be her primary residence.

Mortgage lenders usually offer a lower interest rate for a borrower’s primary residence.

Cook has not directly refuted the allegation about her mortgage documents, but her attorneys said she told the lender she was seeking the Atlanta condo as a vacation home.

Trump, however, sent Cook a letter on Aug. 25 that said, “You may be removed, at my discretion, for cause,” citing the law and Pulte’s referral. “I have determined that there is sufficient cause to remove you from your position,” he wrote.

Cook refused to step down and filed a suit to challenge the decision. She argued the allegation did not amount to cause under the law, and she had not been given a hearing to contest it.

A federal judge in Washington agreed and blocked her firing, noting that unproven allegation of mortgage fraud occurred before she was appointed to the Federal Reserve.

In a 2-1 vote, the appeals court also refused to uphold her firing.

Trump’s lawyers sent an emergency appeal to the Supreme Court on Sept. 18 arguing Congress gave the president the authority to fire a Fed governor he concludes she is not trustworthy.

“Put simply, the President may reasonably determine that interest rates paid by the American people should not be set by a Governor who appears to have lied about facts material to the interest rates she secured for herself — and refuses to explain the apparent misrepresentations,” wrote Trump Solicitor Gen. D. John Sauer.

But the justices refused to act on an emergency appeal and decided they will give the case a full hearing and a written decision.

The United States Supreme Court says it will hear arguments over President Donald Trump’s efforts to remove Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook from her post. The court’s announcement means Cook will stay in the job for now.

The high court announced the decision on Wednesday.

The White House has been trying to remove Cook in the first-ever bid by a president to fire a Fed official, an unprecedented challenge to central bank independence.

The justices declined to immediately decide a Department of Justice request to put on hold a judge’s order temporarily blocking the Republican president from removing Cook, an appointee of Democratic former President Joe Biden, while litigation over the termination continues in a lower court.

The justices said they would hear the case in January.

In creating the Fed in 1913, Congress passed a law called the Federal Reserve Act, which included provisions to shield the central bank from political interference, such as allowing governors to be removed by a president only “for cause”, although the law does not define the term or establish procedures for removal. The law has never been tested in court.

Washington, DC-based US District Judge Jia Cobb on September 9 ruled that Trump’s claims that Cook committed mortgage fraud before taking office, which Cook denies, likely were not sufficient grounds for removal under the Federal Reserve Act.

Trump on August 25 said he was removing Cook from the Fed’s Board of Governors, citing allegations that before joining the central bank in 2022, she falsified records to obtain favourable terms on a mortgage. Her term is set to expire in 2038.

Cook, the first Black woman to serve as a Fed governor, sued Trump soon after. Cook has said the claims made by Trump against her did not give the president the legal authority to remove her and were a pretext to fire her for her monetary policy stance.

The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in a 2-1 ruling on September 15 denied the administration’s request to put Cobb’s order on hold.

Expansive view of presidential powers

In a series of decisions in recent months, the Supreme Court has allowed Trump to remove members of various federal agencies that Congress had established as independent from direct presidential control despite similar job protections for those posts. The decisions suggest that the court, which has a 6-3 conservative majority, may be ready to jettison a key 1935 precedent that preserved these protections in a case that involved the US Federal Trade Commission.

But the court has signalled that it could treat the Fed as distinct from other executive branch agencies, noting in May in a case involving Trump’s dismissal of two Democratic members of federal labour boards that the Fed “is a uniquely structured, quasi-private entity” with a singular historical tradition.

Trump’s bid to fire Cook reflects the expansive view of presidential power he has asserted since returning to office in January. As long as the president identifies a cause for removal, Cook’s sacking is within his “unreviewable discretion”, the Department of Justice said in a September 18 filing to the Supreme Court.

“Put simply, the President may reasonably determine that interest rates paid by the American people should not be set by a Governor who appears to have lied about facts material to the interest rates she secured for herself – and refuses to explain the apparent misrepresentations,” the filing stated.

Cook’s lawyers told the Supreme Court on September 25 that granting Trump’s request, “would eviscerate the Federal Reserve’s longstanding independence, upend financial markets and create a blueprint for future presidents to direct monetary policy based on their political agendas and election calendars”.

A group of 18 former US Federal Reserve officials, Treasury secretaries and other top economic officials who served under presidents from both parties also urged the Supreme Court not to let Trump fire Cook.

The group included the past three Fed chairs, Janet Yellen, Ben Bernanke and Alan Greenspan. In a brief to the court, they wrote that allowing this dismissal would threaten the Fed’s independence and erode public confidence in it.

Cook took part in the Fed’s highly anticipated two-day meeting in Washington, DC, in September, at which the central bank decided to cut interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point as policymakers responded to concerns about weakness in the job market. Cook was among those voting in favour of the cut.

Pressure on Fed

Concerns about the Fed’s independence from the White House in setting monetary policy could have a ripple effect throughout the global economy.

The case has ramifications for the Fed’s ability to set interest rates without regard to the wishes of politicians, widely seen as critical to any central bank’s ability to function independently and carry out tasks such as keeping inflation under control.

Trump this year has demanded that the Fed cut rates aggressively, berating Fed Chair Jerome Powell for his stewardship over monetary policy as the central bank focused on fighting inflation. Trump has called Powell a “numbskull,” “incompetent” and a “stubborn moron”.

Oct. 1 (UPI) — Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook will be permitted to stay on the central bank board at least through next year after legal questions over her termination by U.S. President Donald Trump.

On Wednesday, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Cook can remain on the job on an interim basis into 2026, and agreed to hear oral arguments in January with a likely ruling before June’s end.

The nation’s high court, however, did not explain the basis of its decision in the brief ruling.

In August, Trump fired Cook over his claims of mortgage fraud which Cook has since denied.

No justice dissented in the rare break from a majority that typically has ruled on the side of the Trump administration over other legal issues.

Trump requested Supreme Court intervention in mid-September, but Cook fought back arguing that he does not have the authority.

U.S. presidents under the Federal Reserve Act are forbidden from arbitrarily removing a federal reserve governor unless evidence of wrongdoing presented a “for cause” reason to do so.

Cook sued Trump over the attempted ousting, citing constitutional protections guaranteed to her as an official of the independent federal board.

On Wednesday, a legal analyst said the court’s ruling on Cook means justices are saying: “we’re not going to act immediately.”

“It wouldn’t end the fight,” MSNBC legal commentator Lisa Rubin commented on a news program on January’s looming Supreme Court hearing on Cook.

According to Rubin, the Fed’s Cook could “continue to fight on the merits weather or not (Trump) is legally entitled to fire her for the long-term.”

Sept. 18 (UPI) — President Donald Trump has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to allow him to remove Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook.

Trump has cited a fraud allegation against Cook for his reasoning for firing her, but Cook has fought back, arguing that he doesn’t have the authority.

A federal appeals court on Monday rejected Trump’s attempt to fire Cook.

The three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit issued a 2-1 emergency ruling Monday, ahead of the central bank’s start of monetary policy meetings on Tuesday.

The Fed on Wednesday announced a 0.25% rate cut in the wake of Trump’s demands to do so.

The administration waited for the Fed’s meeting to conclude before going to the high court. It has often sided with Trump on emergency issues.

The Fed traditionally is an independent institution that doesn’t follow White House orders.

If the court agrees with Trump, it would be the first time a Fed governor was fired by a president in the central bank’s 111-year history.

Trump moved to fire Cook late last month on allegations of mortgage fraud, prompting Democrats to accuse the president of conducting a power grab.

Cook challenged her removal in court, and won reinstatement. The district found that her firing likely violated the so-called for-cause provision of the Federal Reserve Act and the Fifth Amendment’s Due Process Clause.

Twice since Aug. 15, Federal Housing Finance Agency Director William Pulte, a Powell critic, sent criminal referrals for Cook to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, accusing Cook of mortgage fraud, alleging she listed properties she owns inconsistently on different forms. The allegations go back to before she was on the board. No charges have been filed.

Trump points to the mortgage fraud allegations as cause for her removal.

Democrats have backed Cook in the fight to keep her seat. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., has been among the most vocal and has described Trump’s attempt to remove Cook an “illegal authoritarian power grab.”

“The courts keep rejecting Donald Trump’s illegal attempt to take over the Fed so he can scapegoat away his failure to lower costs for American families,” Warren said in a statement following the ruling.

“If the courts — including the Supreme Court — continue to uphold the law, Lisa Cook will keep her seat as a Fed governor.”

WASHINGTON — President Trump appealed to the Supreme Court on Thursday seeking to fire Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook from the independent board that can raise or lower interest rates.

The appeal “involves yet another case of improper judicial interference with the President’s removal authority — here, interference with the President’s authority to remove members of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors for cause,” wrote Solicitor Gen. D. John Sauer.

The appeal is the second this month asking the court to give Trump broad new power over the economy.

The first, to be heard in November, will decide if the president to free to impose large import taxes on products coming into this country.

The new case could determine if he is free to remake the Federal Reserve Board by removing a Democratic appointee who he says may have broken the law.

Trump’s lawyers argue that a Fed governor has no legal right to challenge the president’s decision to fire her.

“Put simply, the President may reasonably determine that interest rates paid by the American people should not be set by a Governor who appears to have lied about facts material to the interest rates she secured for herself—and refuses to explain the apparent misrepresentations,” Trump’s lawyer said.

Trump has chafed at the Federal Reserve board for keeping interest rates high to fight inflation, and he threatened to fire board chairman Jay Powell, even though he appointed him to that post in 2018.

But last month, Trump turned his attention to Cook and said he had cause to fire her.

Congress wrote the Federal Reserve Act of 1913 intending to give the central bank board some independence from politics and the current president.

Its seven members are appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate, and they serve staggered terms of 14 years, unless “removed for cause by the president.”

The law does not define what amounts to cause.

President Biden appointed Cook in 2023 and she was confirmed to a full term.

In August, however, Bill Pulte, Trump’s director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, alleged Cook committed mortgage fraud when she took out two housing loans in 2021. One was for $203,000 for a house in Ann Arbor, Mich., and the second was for $540,000 for a condo in Atlanta. In both instances, she signed a loan document saying the property would be her primary residence.

Typically, borrowers obtain a better interest rate for a primary residence. But lawyers say charges of mortgage fraud are extremely rare if the borrower makes the required regular payments on the loan.

About 30 minutes after Pulte posted his allegations, Trump posted on his social media site: “Cook must resign. Now!!!”

Cook has not responded directly to the allegations, but her attorneys pointed to news reports which said she told the lender her Atlanta condo would be a vacation home.

Trump, however, sent Cook a letter on Aug. 25. “You may be removed, at my discretion, for cause,” citing the law and Pulte’s referrral. “I have determined that there is sufficient cause to remove you from your position,” he wrote.

Cook filed a suit to challenge the decision. She argued the allegations did not amount to cause under the law, and she had not been given a hearing to contest the charges.

U.S. District Judge Jia Cobb, a Biden appointee, agreed she made a “strong showing” the firing was illegal and blocked her removal.

She said Congress wrote the “for cause” provision to punish “malfeasance in office,” not conduct that pre-dated her appointment. She also said Cook had been denied “due process of law” because she was not given a hearing.

The U.S. appeals court in Washington, by a 2-1 vote, refused to lift her order on Monday.

Judges Bradley Garcia and J. Michelle Childs, both Biden appointees, said Cook had been denied “even minimal process — that is, notice of the allegation against her and a meaningful opportunity to respond — before she was purportedly removed.”

Judge Gregory Katsas, a Trump appointee, dissented. He said “for cause” removal provision was broader than misconduct in office. It means the president may remove an officer for “some cause relating to” their “ability, fitness, or competence” to hold the office, he said.

And because a government position is not the property of office holders, they do not have a “due process” right to contest their firing, he said.

WASHINGTON — After a late-night vote and last-minute ruling, the Federal Reserve began a key meeting on interest rate policy Tuesday with both a new Trump administration appointee and an official the White House has targeted for removal.

Stephen Miran, a top White House economist who was confirmed by the Senate with unusual speed late Monday, was sworn in Tuesday as a member of the Fed’s board of governors. He will vote on the Fed’s interest rate decision on Wednesday, when the central bank is expected to reduce its key rate by a quarter-point. Miran may dissent in favor of a larger cut.

Also attending the meeting is Fed governor Lisa Cook, whom the Trump administration has sought to fire in an unprecedented attempt to reshape the Fed, which historically is considered independent of day-to-day politics. An appeals court late Monday upheld an earlier ruling that the firing violated Cook’s due process rights. A lower court had earlier also ruled that President Trump did not provide sufficient “cause” to remove Cook.

With both officials in place, the Fed’s two-day meeting could be unusually contentious for an institution that typically prefers to operate by consensus. It’s possible that as many as three of the seven governors could dissent from a decision to reduce rates by just a quarter-point in favor of a half-point. That would be the first time since 1988 that three governors have dissented. Economists also say that one of the five regional Fed bank presidents who also vote on rates could dissent in favor of keeping rates unchanged.

On Tuesday, the White House said it would appeal Cook’s case to the Supreme Court, though did not specify when.

“The President lawfully removed Lisa Cook for cause,” White House spokesman Kush Desai said. “The Administration will appeal this decision and looks forward to ultimate victory on the issue.”

Rugaber writes for the Associated Press.

Sept. 15 (UPI) — A federal appeals court on Monday rejected President Donald Trump‘s attempt to fire Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, handing the American president another legal defeat in his effort to gain influence over the independent monetary policy-setting agency.

The three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit issued a 2-1 emergency ruling Monday, ahead of the central bank’s start of monetary policy meetings on Tuesday.

The Trump administration had asked the appeals court to allow the president to fire Cook, the first Black woman to sit on the Federal Reserve Board, ahead of the meeting, but the court rejected his request, finding the administration had denied her due process protections.

“The government does not dispute that it failed to provide Cook even minimal process — that is, notice of the allegation against her and a meaningful opportunity to respond — before she was purportedly removed,” Judges Bradley Garcia and Michelle Childs, both President Joe Biden appointees, wrote in the ruling.

“Granting the government’s request for relief when Cook has received no meaningful process would contravene that principle.”

The president only has the power to remove someone from the independent bipartisan monetary-setting agency for cause.

Trump moved to fire Cook late last month on allegations of mortgage fraud, prompting Democrats to accuse the president of conducting a power grab.

Cook challenged her removal in court, and won reinstatement. The district found that her firing likely violated the so-called for cause provision of the Federal Reserve Act and the Fifth Amendment’s Due Process Clause.

The appeals court majority on Monday agreed with the district court, stating its ruling “is correct.”

“Cook has been serving in her position continuously despite the President’s purported termination. Granting the government’s request for emergency relief would thus upend, not preserve, the status quo,” the court ruled.

“Given these unique circumstances, and Cook’s strong likelihood of success on at least her due process claim, the government’s request for relief is rightly denied.”

In dissent, Judge Gregory Katsas, a Trump appointee, sided with the president, saying it was likely to prevail on its claims that it has cause for Cook’s removal.

Trump fired Cook as he was applying pressure on her boss, Fed Chair Jerome Powell, to lower interest rates, which he has been seeking for months.

Twice since Aug. 15, Federal Housing Finance Agency Director William Pulte, a Powell critic, sent criminal referrals for Cook to Attorney General Pam Bondi, accusing Cook of mortgage fraud, alleging she listed properties she owns inconsistently on different forms. The allegations go back to before she was on the board.

No charges have actually been filed.

Trump points to the mortgage fraud allegations as cause for her removal. Democrats have backed Cook in the fight. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., has been among the most vocal and has described Trump’s attempt to remove Cook an “illegal authoritarian power grab.”

“The courts keep rejecting Donald Trump’s illegal attempt to take over the Fed so he can scapegoat away his failure to lower costs for American families,” Warren said Monday night on X following the ruling.

“If the courts — including the Supreme Court — continue to uphold the law, Lisa Cook will keep her seat as a Fed governor.”

The ruling comes as Senate Republicans on Monday voted to confirm White House economic adviser Stephen Miran to join the Federal Reserve Board, despite Democrats voicing criticism over a White House advisor being a part of the independent agency.

The Trump administration renewed its request Sunday for a federal appeals court to let him fire Lisa Cook from the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors, a move the president is seeking ahead of the central bank’s vote on interest rates.

The administration filed a response just ahead of a 3 p.m. Eastern deadline Sunday to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, arguing that Cook’s legal arguments for why she should stay on the job were meritless. Lawyers for Cook argued in a Saturday filing that the administration has not shown sufficient cause to fire her, and emphasized the risks to the economy and country if a president were allowed to fire a Fed governor without proper cause.

Sunday’s filing is the latest step in an unprecedented effort by the White House to shape the historically independent Fed. President Trump’s move to oust Cook marks the first time in the central bank’s 112-year history that a president has tried to fire a governor.

“The public and the executive share an interest in ensuring the integrity of the Federal Reserve,” Trump administration lawyers argued in Sunday’s filing. “And that requires respecting the president’s statutory authority to remove governors ‘for cause’ when such cause arises.”

Bill Pulte, a Trump appointee to the agency that regulates mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, has accused Cook of signing separate documents in which she allegedly said that both her Atlanta property and a home in Ann Arbor, Mich., also purchased in June 2021, were “primary residences.” Pulte submitted a criminal referral to the Justice Department, which has opened an investigation.

Trump relied on those allegations to fire Cook “for cause.”

Cook, the first Black woman to serve as a Fed governor, referred to the condominium as a “vacation home” in a loan estimate, a characterization that could undermine claims by the Trump administration that she committed mortgage fraud. Documents obtained by the Associated Press also showed that on a second form submitted by Cook to gain a security clearance, she described the property as a “second home.”

Cook sued the Trump administration to block her firing, and a federal judge ruled Tuesday that the removal was illegal and reinstated her to the Fed’s board.

The administration appealed and asked for an emergency ruling just before the Fed is set to meet this week and decide whether to reduce its key interest rate. Most economists expect they will cut the rate by a quarter point.

Suderman writes for the Associated Press.

Sept. 13 (UPI) — Federal Reserve Gov. Lisa Cook might not have committed fraud when obtaining a mortgage loan on at least one property for which she is accused of fraud.

Cook in 2021 described the Atlanta condominium that she bought as a second home or a vacation home in documents reviewed by The Washington Post and The New York Times.

A document from May 2021 described the Atlanta property’s use as a “vacation home, and a December 2021 form that she provided to the Biden administration called the condo a second home, according to The Washington Post.

She submitted the December document for review after President Joe Biden nominated her to join the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors.

A similar review by The New York Times reaches the same conclusions but says the documents are not legal documents and do not disprove claims that she committed fraud by claiming the Atlanta property and another home in Ann Arbor, Mich.

Federal Housing Agency Director Bill Pulte initially raised concern that Cook might have committed fraud and said the newly released documents do not disprove fraud allegations.

“If Dr. Cook solicited estimates as a vacation home and then entered into a mortgage agreement as a primary residence, that is extremely concerning and … evidence of further intent to defraud,” Pulte said, told The New York Times.

Pulte has referred the issue to the Department of Justice, which is investigating the matter.

President Donald Trump announced he is firing Cook, but she challenged her dismissal in a lawsuit and remains a Federal Reserve governor at least until the legal matter is resolved.

The request comes after a federal court earlier this week blocked Lisa Cook’s firing while her lawsuit challenging her dismissal moves forward.

The administration of United States President Donald Trump has asked an appeals court to remove Lisa Cook from the Federal Reserve’s board of governors by Monday, before the central bank’s next vote on interest rates.

The request on Thursday represents an extraordinary effort by the White House to shape the board before the Fed’s interest rate-setting committee meets next week on Tuesday and Wednesday.

At the same time, Senate Republicans are pushing to confirm Stephen Miran, Trump’s nominee to an open spot on the Fed’s board, which could happen as soon as Monday.

In a court filing on Thursday, the Department of Justice asked the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit to pause US District Judge Jia Cobb’s Tuesday ruling temporarily blocking Cook’s removal, pending the administration’s appeal.

Trump moved to fire Cook in late August. Cook, who denies any wrongdoing, filed a lawsuit saying Trump’s claim that she engaged in mortgage fraud before she joined the central bank did not give him legal authority to remove her, and was a pretext to fire her for her monetary policy stance.

Cobb’s ruling prevents the Fed from following through on Cook’s firing while her lawsuit moves forward.

In their emergency appeal, Trump’s lawyers argued that even if the conduct occurred before her time as governor, her alleged action “indisputably calls into question Cook’s trustworthiness and whether she can be a responsible steward of the interest rates and economy”.

The administration asked an appeals court to issue an emergency decision reversing the lower court by Monday. If their appeal is successful, Cook would be removed from the Fed’s board until her case is ultimately resolved in the courts, and she would miss next week’s meeting.

If the appeals court rules in Cook’s favour, the administration could seek an emergency ruling from the Supreme Court.

The case, which will likely end up before the US Supreme Court, has ramifications for the Fed’s ability to set interest rates without regard to politicians’ wishes, widely seen as critical to any central bank’s ability to keep inflation under control.

The Supreme Court and lower appeals courts, including the DC Circuit, have temporarily lifted several other rulings that briefly blocked Trump from firing officials at agencies that have historically been independent from the White House.

On Wednesday, however, the DC Circuit blocked Trump from firing US Copyright Office director Shira Perlmutter while she appeals a lower court’s refusal to reinstate her to the post.

Trump has demanded that the Fed cut rates immediately and aggressively, repeatedly berating Fed Chair Jerome Powell for his stewardship over monetary policy. Cook has voted with the Fed’s majority on every rate decision since she started in 2022, including on both rate hikes and rate cuts.

Fed’s independence

The law that created the Fed says governors may be removed only “for cause”, but does not define the term nor establish procedures for removal. No president has ever removed a Fed governor, and the law has never been tested in court.

Cobb on Tuesday said the public’s interest in the Fed’s independence from political coercion weighed in favour of keeping Cook at the Fed while the case continues.

She said that the best reading of the law is that a Fed governor may only be removed for misconduct while in office. The mortgage fraud claims against Cook all relate to actions she took prior to her US Senate confirmation in 2022.

Trump and William Pulte, the Federal Housing Finance Agency director appointed by the president, say Cook inaccurately described three separate properties on mortgage applications, which could have allowed her to obtain lower interest rates and tax credits.

The Justice Department has also launched a criminal mortgage fraud probe into Cook and has issued grand jury subpoenas out of both Georgia and Michigan, according to documents seen by Reuters and a source familiar with the matter.

WASHINGTON — President Trump’s administration on Wednesday appealed a ruling blocking him from firing Federal Reserve Gov. Lisa Cook as he seeks more control over the traditionally independent board.

The notice of appeal came hours after U.S. District Judge Jia Cobb handed down the ruling. The White House has insisted Trump, a Republican, has the right to fire Cook over over allegations raised by one of his appointees that she committed mortgage fraud related to two properties she bought before she joined the Fed.

The case could soon reach the Supreme Court, where the conservative majority has allowed Trump to fire several board members of other independent agencies but has suggested that power has limitations at the Federal Reserve.

Cook’s lawyers have argued that firing her was unlawful because presidents can only fire Fed governors for cause, which has typically meant poor job performance or misconduct. The judge found the president’s removal power is limited to actions taken during a governor’s time in office.

Cook is accused of saying that both her properties, in Michigan and Georgia, were primary residences, which could have resulted in lower down payments and mortgage rates. Her lawsuit denied the allegations without providing details. Her attorneys said she should have gotten a chance to respond to them before getting fired.

Trump has repeatedly attacked Fed Chair Jerome Powell for not cutting the short-term interest rate the Fed controls more quickly. If Trump can replace Cook, he may be able to gain a 4-3 majority on the Fed’s governing board.

No president has sought to fire a Fed governor before. Economists prefer independent central banks because they can do unpopular things like lifting interest rates to combat inflation more easily than elected officials can.

Cook is set to participate in a Fed meeting next week. The meeting is expected to reduce its key short-term rate by a quarter-point to between 4% and 4.25%.

Whitehurst writes for the Associated Press.

Earlier this month, Apple CEO Tim Cook joined President Trump and senior Cabinet members in the Oval Office to announce the company’s plan to invest $100 billion into U.S. manufacturing over the next four years. This comes on top of Apple’s previously unveiled $500 billion domestic infrastructure commitment.

Apple’s ramped-up infrastructure efforts have clear implications for Broadcom‘s (AVGO -3.65%) long-term growth trajectory. As Apple expands its U.S. footprint, Broadcom stands to benefit not only from increased demand for chips but also from its emerging role in powering next-generation networking, connectivity, and artificial intelligence (AI) applications.

Let’s break down why Apple’s continued investment in infrastructure strengthens Broadcom’s strategic position, and how it accelerates the company’s ambitions in AI and beyond.

Broadcom has deep inroads with hyperscalers

While Apple may be one of Broadcom’s most visible partners, the company has also been quietly building deep ties with AI hyperscalers — Alphabet being a notable one.

Broadcom’s portfolio spans custom silicon, networking switches, and optical interconnects — the foundational layers that power modern data centers. These may not be headline-grabbing products, but they serve as the invisible scaffolding that enables AI models to train at scale and keeps data workloads flowing smoothly — avoiding costly compute and connectivity bottlenecks.

What makes Apple’s reliance on Broadcom so compelling is how it bridges two high-growth landscapes: consumer electronics (i.e., semiconductor components for the iPhone) and enterprise-grade AI infrastructure. Broadcom’s established relationships with hyperscalers validate its role as a provider of specialized, mission-critical technologies. Meanwhile, Apple’s endorsement amplifies that credibility — signaling to the broader AI ecosystem that Broadcom is a trusted partner.

In essence, Broadcom is solidifying its influence across the entire technology stack — from chips inside of consumer devices to the infrastructure driving next-generation AI applications inside hyperscale data centers.

Image source: Getty Images.

Broadcom is a quiet beneficiary of rising AI infrastructure investment

The explosion of AI workloads has only heightened the need for networking gear and the specialized chips that enable big tech to operate at scale. While Broadcom dominates many of these use cases, it rarely commands the same spotlight as Nvidia, Advanced Micro Devices, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing.

The reason is straightforward: Broadcom isn’t building GPUs that capture headlines. Rather, the company designs the connective tissue that allows GPUs, CPUs, and memory chips to communicate efficiently. Without Broadcom’s technologies, generative AI advancements would remain throttled by data transfer limits and networking bottlenecks.

Is Broadcom stock a buy right now?

While Broadcom lacks the same levels of excitement that have crowned peers like Nvidia as an “AI darling,” this hasn’t translated into a bargain stock price. On the contrary, Broadcom now trades at a forward price-to-earnings (P/E) multiple of 45 — well above its three-year average and essentially at the highest point of the current AI cycle.

AVGO PE Ratio (Forward) data by YCharts

Broadcom’s premium valuation tells a clear story: The market increasingly views the company as a structural beneficiary of ongoing AI buildouts. Although expectations remain high, Broadcom’s relationships with hyperscalers, as well as its alliance with communications leaders such as Apple help diversify the company’s ecosystem and drive home its broad depth across various applications and use cases.

Unlike Nvidia or AMD, Broadcom does not need to rely on generational product cycles to capture the attention of investors. Instead, the company’s appeal lies in its subtle, less-visible services that keep the digital economy humming along.

This quiet, indispensable nature makes Broadcom less vulnerable to hype-driven volatility while still offering meaningful upside given its exposure to myriad secular trends reshaping the technology landscape.

While the stock isn’t cheap, Broadcom represents a durable infrastructure play as the AI narrative continues to unfold. To me, Broadcom is a compelling opportunity to buy and hold over the long term.

Aug. 28 (UPI) — The Trump administration Thursday night announced a second criminal referral against Federal Reserve Board Governor Lisa Cook for mortgage fraud, as she sues President Donald Trump for attempting to illegally dismiss her.

William Pulte, the agency’s director, announced the second referral on X, stating “3 strikes and you’re out.”

“Lisa Cook needs to step aside — with the evidence coming out on her 3rd mortgage and her alleged misrepresentations to the Federal Government ethics department, I believe she is causing irreparable harm to our beloved Federal Reserve,” Pulte said in a second statement. “How is Jay Powell fine with her behavior?”

Pulte had sent the first criminal referral to Attorney General Pam Bondi on Aug. 26, accusing Cook, the first Black woman to sit on the independent board, of falsifying documents and committing mortgage, bank and wire fraud. She is accused of signing two separate mortgage documents for two separate properties that claim each is her primary residence. One property is in Michigan and the other is in Atlanta. The two documents were allegedly signed two weeks apart during the summer of 2021.

The new referral is about a third property in Cambridge, Mass.

Pulte states Cook misrepresented the property by calling it her “second home” on a 15-year mortgage document in December 2021, and then listing it on a U.S. ethics form as an “investment/rental property” weeks later.

Trump moved to fire Cook on Monday, after calling for her to resign, citing the first criminal referral as reason for the dismissal, the legality of which was unclear and has prompted staunch opposition from Democrats.

The second referral was announced hours after Cook sued Trump for attempting to fire her.

“This case challenges President Trump’s unprecedented and illegal attempt to remove Governor Cook from her position, which, if allowed to occur, would be the first of its kind in the Board’s history,” the suit said.

“It would subvert the Federal Reserve Act, which explicitly requires a showing of ’cause’ for a Governor’s removal, which an unsubstantiated allegation about private mortgage applications submitted by Governor Cook prior to her Senate confirmation is not,” the case introduction continued.

“The President’s actions violate Governor Cook’s Fifth Amendment due process rights and her statutory right to notice and a hearing under the [Federal Reserve Act],” it further stated. “Accordingly, Governor Cook seeks immediate declaratory and injunctive relief to confirm her status as a member of the Board of Governors, safeguard her and the Board’s congressionally mandated independence, and allow Governor Cook and the Federal Reserve to continue its critical work.”

The suit names Trump, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell and the Fed Board of Governors as defendants, and a hearing for a request for a temporary restraining order has been slated for 10 a.m. EDT on Friday in front of Federal Judge Jia Cobb.

Should she win the case, her lawyers ask for Trump to declare she remains an active Fed governor, and that board members can only be removed for cause, as described in the Federal Reserve Act, the law under which Trump is attempting to fire her.

The suit also seeks “an award of the costs of this action and reasonable attorney fees under the Equal Access to Justice Act or any other applicable law,” as well as an “award of all other appropriate relief.”

Trump campaigned on retaliating against political opponents. Since returning to the White House in January, he has used his executive powers to strip lawyers and law firms that have represented or are connected to his rivals of security clearances.

Two other Democrats and Trump critics — New York Attorney General Letitia James and Sen. Adam Schiff of California — have also been accused of mortgage fraud by the Trump administration.

Trump’s attempt to fire Cook follows months of the president applying political pressure on her boss, Powell, to lower interest rates. Despite the insults and demands from Trump, Powell has resisted, stating economic policy will not be determined by politics.

Democrats have accused Trump of perpetrating an illegal authoritarian power grab by firing Cook. On Thursday night, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., ranking member of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, accused Trump of attempting to “turn the Federal Reserve into the ‘Central Bank of Trump.'”

“The Fed makes decisions based on economic data — not political pressure,” she said in a statement. “This move would undermine the world’s confidence in our economy and harm working people.

“And it is illegal.”

Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook has filed a lawsuit arguing that United States President Donald Trump has no power to remove her from office, setting up a legal battle that could reset long-established norms between the president and the central bank.

The lawsuit was filed on Thursday, three days after Trump published a letter saying Cook was removed from her job.

In the lawsuit, Cook argues that Trump violated federal law in attempting to remove her from her position. Under the Federal Reserve Act of 1913, presidents may only remove a Federal Reserve governor “for cause”, a high bar generally understood to mean grave misconduct or dereliction of duty.

As the country’s central banking system, the Federal Reserve is considered independent from political branches of government like the presidency or Congress. In theory, that allows it to set monetary policy without political influence.

But concerns about whether the Fed can maintain its independence from the White House under Trump could have a ripple effect throughout the global economy. The US dollar stumbled against other major currencies after Trump first said he would remove Cook.

“President Trump’s attempt to fire Dr Lisa Cook is continuing to add uncertainty and chaos to the US economy,” Sameera Fazili, the former deputy director of the National Economic Council, told Al Jazeera.

Fazili, who previously served as a staff member at the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, explained that disruptions at the central bank would negatively impact US businesses.

“An economy needs stable and predictable laws to function smoothly. That’s how you earn investor trust and raise capital for your businesses,” she said, adding: “I applaud Dr Cook for standing up and fighting for the rule of law.”

Cook’s lawsuit is likely headed to the Supreme Court, where a conservative majority has at least tentatively allowed Trump to fire officials from other agencies.

But the court recently signalled that the Federal Reserve may qualify for a rare exception.

In its May decision in the case Trump v Wilcox, the Supreme Court argued that Federal Reserve governors are distinct from other federal employees, because the bank “is a uniquely structured, quasi-private entity that follows in the distinct historical tradition of the First and Second Banks of the United States”.

Mortgage allegations

Still, Trump, a Republican president, has argued that he does have cause to remove Cook from her post.

In his August 25 letter, he accused Cook of committing mortgage fraud in 2021, a year before she joined the Federal Reserve’s governing body.

“The American people must be able to have full confidence in the honesty of the members entrusted with setting policy and overseeing the Federal Reserve,” he wrote.

“In light of your deceitful and potentially criminal conduct in a financial matter, they cannot and I do not have such confidence in your integrity.”

The Federal Reserve Act does not define what removal “for cause” means, nor does it lay out any standard or procedures for removal.

Trump, however, has argued that Cook’s actions amount to “gross negligence”, though she has denied the allegations.

No president has ever removed a Federal Reserve board member, and the legal standard governing removals from the central bank has never been tested in court.

A Federal Reserve spokesperson said on Tuesday, before the lawsuit was filed, that the bank would abide by any court decision.

Cook was appointed to the Federal Reserve in 2022 by former President Joe Biden, a Democrat, and is the first Black woman to serve on the central bank’s governing body.

Questions about Cook’s mortgages were first raised in August by William Pulte, a Trump appointee who is the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

Pulte referred the matter to Attorney General Pamela Bondi for investigation.

Cook took out the mortgages in Michigan and Georgia in 2021 when she was an academic, researching and teaching economics.

An official financial disclosure form for 2024 lists three mortgages held by Cook, with two listed as personal residences. Loans for primary residences can carry lower rates than mortgages on investment properties, which are considered riskier by banks.

Some experts have questioned whether transactions that preceded Cook’s appointment to the Federal Reserve would be adequate cause to remove her. After all, Cook’s mortgages were in the public record when she was vetted and confirmed by the Senate in 2022.

Trump has made several allegations of mortgage fraud against perceived political adversaries, including Senator Adam Schiff of California and New York Attorney General Letitia James, both Democrats.

Like Cook, Schiff and James have denied wrongdoing.

Pushing for influence on the Federal Reserve

For her part, Cook said in a statement earlier this week that “no causes exist under the law, and [Trump] has no authority” to remove her from her job.

Her lawyers have also said that Trump’s “demands lack any proper process, basis or legal authority”.

Since Trump took office for a second term in January, critics have accused him of seeking broad powers beyond the presidency, across all branches of government.

He has sought to remove inspectors general and the heads of independent agencies he felt were unfriendly to his policies, despite federal laws that protect their employment.

Such laws require the president to clearly define the cause for removing federal employees. Those causes include neglect of duty, malfeasance, and inefficiency.

While the Federal Reserve Act does not identify those causes in its terms, they could be used as a guide for courts to determine if Trump can legally fire Cook.

In Thursday’s lawsuit, Cook’s lawyers said nothing she has done would amount to such “cause”.

“Neither the type of ‘offense’ the President cited nor the threadbare evidence against Governor Cook would constitute ‘cause’ for removal even if the President’s allegations were true – which they are not,” they wrote.

“The President would not have ‘cause’ to remove a Federal Reserve Governor even if he possessed smoking gun evidence that she jaywalked in college.”

The lawsuit also argues that the president violated Cook’s right to due process by attempting to terminate her position without notice.

Trump has faced other lawsuits for attempting to remove federal officials, including in the Trump v Wilcox case.

That case concerned Gwynne Wilcox, the first Black woman to sit on the National Labor Relations Board, which hears private-sector labour disputes.

Cook’s departure from the Federal Reserve, however, would allow Trump to name his fourth pick to the bank’s seven-member board.

The president has repeatedly berated Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell for not lowering interest rates and for his alleged mishandling of a multibillion-dollar renovation project.

While Trump has previously threatened to remove Powell before his term ends in May, he has since backed away from those remarks.

A full term for a Federal Reserve governor like Cook, meanwhile, is 14 years.

Aug. 26 (UPI) — Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook has declared that not only won’t she resign after President Donald Trump fired her, but will sue him for trying.

“President Trump purported to fire me ‘for cause’ when no cause exists under the law, and he has no authority to do so,” Cook said in a statement Tuesday. “I will not resign.”

“I will continue to carry out my duties to help the American economy as I have been doing since 2022,” she concluded.

Trump sent her a letter Monday that stated “Pursuant to my authority under Article II of the Constitution of the United States and the Federal Reserve Act of 1913, as amended, you are hereby removed from your position on the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve, effective immediately.”

Section 10 of the Federal Reserve Act does state a Fed governor can be “removed for cause by the President.”

Trump listed a criminal referral the Justice Department received from U.S. Director of Federal Housing Bill Pulte as his cause, which he alleged to have evidence Cook committed mortgage fraud.

Pulte, who has made several accusations against Cook over more than a week, posted a statement Monday from the U.S. Federal Housing Department.

“Thank you President Trump for your commitment to stopping mortgage fraud and following the law,” Pulte wrote to X. “If you commit mortgage fraud in America, we will come after you, no matter who you are.”

However, no charges have been levied against Cook of any sort.

Cook has since retained the services of attorney Abbe Lowell.

“President Trump has no authority to remove Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook,” he said in a statement Tuesday.

“His attempt to fire her, based solely on a referral letter, lacks any factual or legal basis,” Lowell added. “We will be filing a lawsuit challenging this illegal action.”

Two of the seven current Fed governors are prior Trump appointees, and as now-former Fed Governor Adriana Kugler resigned earlier this month, Trump can appoint someone of his choice to fill her seat. Should Trump succeed in terminating the Biden-appointed Cook or should she resign, he could also replace her with an appointee of his choice, which would shift the board to a majority of governors who share his economic positions.

Aug. 26 (UPI) — President Donald Trump on Monday fired Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook as he continues to feud with her boss over lowering interest rates.

The legality of Cooks’ firing was unclear, and has prompted Democrats to accuse the Republican president of perpetrating an “illegal authoritarian power grab.”

Trump informed Cook of her dismissal in a letter he made public on his Truth Social platform, informing the first Black woman to sit on the Reserve Board that he has “determined that there is sufficient cause to remove you from your position” over allegations of making false statements on mortgage agreements.

“In light of your deceitful and potentially criminal conduct in a financial matter, they cannot and I do not have such confidence in your integrity,” Trump said in the letter.

Trump fired Cook following months of applying political pressure on her boss, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, to lower interest rates. Amid the insults and demands Trump has made of Powell, the Trump-nominated chair from his first administration has stated economic policy will not be influenced by politics.

On Aug. 15, Federal Housing Finance Agency Director William Pulte, a Powell critic, sent a criminal referral for Cook to Attorney General Pam Bondi, accusing Cook of falsifying documents as well as mortgage, bank and wire fraud for signing mortgage documents. She is accused of signing two separate mortgage documents for two separate properties that claim each is her primary residence. One property is in Michigan and the other is in Atlanta. The two documents were allegedly signed two weeks apart during the summer of 2021.

After Pulte made the criminal referral public, Trump called for Cook to resign, which she did not do.

In his Monday letter, Trump cited the allegations against Cook, saying her signing of both mortgage documents “exhibits the sort of gross negligence in financial transactions that calls into question your competence and trustworthiness as a financial regulator.”

Cook was fired under the Federal Reserve Act of 1913, which stipulates that the president may only remove members of the board for cause.

“The illegal attempt to fire Lisa Cook is the latest example of a desperate president searching for a scapegoat to cover for his own failure to lower costs for Americans,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass, ranking member of the Senate Banking Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, said in a statement.

“It’s an authoritarian power grab that blatantly violates the Federal Reserve Act, and must be overturned in court.”

Pulte on Monday night thanked Trump for his “commitment to stopping mortgage fraud” by firing Cook.

“Fraud will not be tolerated in President Trump’s housing market,” he said on X.

Trump campaigned on using the office of the presidency to retaliate against his political rivals. Since returning to the White House in January, he has used his executive powers to strip security clearances from perceived political rivals, including lawyers who prosecuted his criminal cases, as well as law firms and former security officials.

Along with Cook, New York Attorney General Letitia James and Sen. Adam Schiff of California have also been accused of mortgage fraud.

Early this month, Trump has also fired Erika McEntarfer, the Senate-confirmed head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, after job growth was slower than expected, claiming the numbers were inaccurate. Democrats and critics accused Trump of dangerously politicizing economic data.

Cooks’ firing is expected to be challenged in court, but her vacancy permits Trump to nominate a replacement.

Following Cooks’ firing on Monday, Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., described Trump’s move as “reckless” and clearly unlawful.”

“The Federal Reserve Act permits removal only for cause, serious misconduct, not partisan smears dressed as ‘referrals’ from a hack like Ed Martin,” Nadler said in a statement. Martin has been tapped to be the special attorney on mortgage fraud cases.

“Trump undermining the Fed for political reasons endangers financial stability and every American’s livelihood, and must be challenged in court immediately.”

WASHINGTON — President Trump said Monday night that he’s firing Federal Reserve Gov. Lisa Cook, an unprecedented move that would constitute a sharp escalation in his battle to exert greater control over what has long been considered an institution independent from day-to-day politics.

Trump said in a letter posted on his Truth Social platform that he is removing Cook effective immediately because of allegations that she committed mortgage fraud. Bill Pulte, a Trump appointee to the agency that regulates mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, made the accusations last week.

Pulte alleged that Cook had claimed two primary residences — in Ann Arbor, Mich., and Atlanta — in 2021 to get better mortgage terms. Mortgage rates are often higher on second homes or those purchased to rent.

Trump’s move is likely to touch off an extensive legal battle that will probably go to the Supreme Court and could disrupt financial markets, potentially pushing interest rates higher.

The independence of the Fed is considered critical to its ability to fight inflation because it enables it to take unpopular steps such as raising interest rates. If bond investors start to lose faith that the Fed will be able to control inflation, they will demand higher rates to own bonds, pushing up borrowing costs for mortgages, car loans and business loans.

Legal scholars noted that the allegations are likely a pretext for the president to open up another seat on the seven-member board so he can appoint a loyalist to push for his long-stated goal of lower interest rates.

Fed governors vote on the central bank’s interest rate decisions and on issues of financial regulation. Although they are appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate, they are not like Cabinet secretaries, who serve at the pleasure of the president. They serve 14-year terms that are staggered in an effort to insulate the Fed from political influence.

No president has sought to fire a Fed governor before. In recent decades, presidents of both parties have largely respected Fed independence, though Richard Nixon and Lyndon Johnson put heavy pressure on the Fed during their presidencies — mostly behind closed doors.

Still, that behind-the-scenes pressure to keep interest rates low, the same goal sought by Trump, has widely been blamed for touching off rampant inflation in the late 1960s and ‘70s.

The announcement came days after Cook said she wouldn’t leave despite Trump previously calling for her to resign. “I have no intention of being bullied to step down from my position because of some questions raised in a tweet,” Cook said in a previous statement issued by the Fed.

Senate Democrats had expressed support for Cook, who has not been charged with wrongdoing.

Another Fed governor, Adriana Kugler, stepped down unexpectedly Aug. 1, and Trump has nominated one of his economic advisors, Stephen Miran, to fill out the remainder of her term until January.

“The Federal Reserve has tremendous responsibility for setting interest rates and regulating reserve member banks. The American people must have the full confidence in the honesty of the members entrusted with setting policy and overseeing the Federal Reserve,” Trump wrote in a letter addressed to Cook, a copy of which he posted online. “In light of your deceitful and potentially criminal conduct in a financial matter, they cannot and I do not have such confidence in your integrity.”

Trump argued that firing Cook was constitutional, even if doing so will raise questions about control of the Fed as an independent entity.

“The executive power of the United States is vested to me as President and, as President, I have a solemn duty that the laws of the United States are faithfully enacted,” the president wrote in the letter to Cook. “I have determined that faithfully enacting the law requires your immediate removal from office.”

Among the unresolved legal questions are whether Cook could be allowed to remain in her seat while the case plays out. She may have to fight the legal battle herself, as the injured party, rather than the Fed.

In the meantime, Trump’s announcement drew swift rebuke from advocates and former Fed officials who worry that Trump is trying to exert too much power and control over the nation’s central bank.

“The President’s effort to fire a sitting Federal Reserve Governor is part of a concerted effort to transform the financial regulators from independent watchdogs into obedient lapdogs that do as they’re told. This could have real consequences for Americans feeling the squeeze from higher prices,” Rohit Chopra, former director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, said in a statement.

It is the latest effort by the administration to take control over one of the few remaining independent agencies in Washington. Trump has repeatedly attacked the Fed’s chair, Jerome H. Powell, for not cutting its short-term interest rate, and even threatened to fire him.

Forcing Cook off the Fed’s governing board would provide Trump an opportunity to appoint a loyalist. Trump has said he would appoint only officials who would support cutting rates.

Powell signaled last week that the Fed may cut rates soon even as inflation risks remain moderate. Meanwhile, Trump will be able to replace Powell in May 2026, when Powell’s term expires. However, 12 members of the Fed’s interest-rate-setting committee have a vote on whether to raise or lower interest rates, so even replacing the chair might not guarantee that Fed policy will shift the way Trump wants.

Rugaber and Weissert write for the Associated Press.

BREAKINGBREAKING,

The US president says Lisa Cook to be removed from position ‘effective immediately’.

United President Donald Trump has ordered the removal of Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook amid unproven claims of mortgage fraud.

In a letter posted on social media on Monday night, Trump said Cook was being sacked “effective immediately”, in accordance with his powers under the US Constitution and the 1913 Federal Reserve Act.

Citing allegations made last week by the US federal mortgage regulator, Trump said there was “sufficient reason to believe you may have made false statements on one or more mortgage agreements”.

“The Federal Reserve has tremendous responsibility for setting interest rates and regulating reserve and members banks,” Trump said in the letter, which was shared on his platform Truth Social.

“The American people must be able to have full confidence in the honesty of the members entrusted with setting policy and overseeing the Federal Reserve. In light of your deceitful and potentially criminal conduct in a financial matter, they cannot and I do not have such confidence in your integrity.”

Trump had on Friday threatened to fire Cook, who was appointed by former President Joe Biden, if she did not resign.

Trump’s extraordinary move is set to raise further questions about the independence of the US central bank, which has been under intense pressure from Trump to lower interest rates.

In a letter addressed to US Attorney General Pam Bondi and Department of Justice official Ed Martin earlier this month, Federal Housing Finance Agency director Bill Pulte, a staunch Trump ally, alleged that Cook had listed two properties as her primary home addresses.

The Federal Reserve did not immediately respond to Al Jazeera’s request for comment.

More to follow…

US President Donald Trump said on Monday he would immediately remove Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook from her position on the central bank’s board of directors.

In an announcement made on his social media platform Truth Social, Trump posted a letter addressed to Cook in which he informed her of his decision and accused her of making “deceitful and potentially criminal” mortgage agreements.

Neither Cook or the Fed has commented on the sacking.

Trump has put increasing pressure on the Fed – especially its chair Jerome Powell – in recent weeks over what he sees as the US central bank’s unwillingness to lower interest rates. He has repeatedly floated the possibility of firing Powell.

According to Trump’s letter, Cook signed one document attesting that a property in Michigan would be her primary residence for the next year.

“Two weeks later, you signed another document for a property in Georgia stating that it would be your primary residence for the next year,” he said.

“It is inconceivable that you were not aware of your first commitment when making the second,” Trump said.

In a statement last week, after she was accused of mortgage fraud by the head of the Housing Finance Agency, Cook said she had “no intention of being bullied to step down from my position because of some questions raised in a tweet”.

She said she was “gathering the accurate information to answer any legitimate questions and provide the facts”.

Cook is the first African American woman to sit on the board, a position she has held since 2022.

Cook, who has been accused of mortgage fraud, has said she will not be bullied by Trump into resigning.

The United States Department of Justice plans to investigate Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, with a top official informing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell of the probe and encouraging him to remove her, Bloomberg News has reported.

A letter to Powell from Ed Martin, a Department of Justice (DOJ) official who has led similar investigations into Senator Adam Schiff of California and New York Attorney General Letitia James, said Cook’s case “requires further examination”, Bloomberg reported on Thursday.

“At this time, I encourage you to remove Ms Cook from your Board,” Martin wrote, according to Bloomberg. “Do it today before it is too late! After all, no American thinks it is appropriate that she serve during this time with a cloud hanging over her.”

The DOJ did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

Asked about the report, a Fed spokesperson referred to Cook’s statement on Wednesday, when she said she had no intention of being “bullied” into resigning after President Donald Trump called for her to step down on the basis of allegations made by a member of his administration about mortgages she holds in Michigan and Georgia.

The Federal Reserve Act provides no authority for a Fed chair to remove another member of the Board of Governors.

Cook, the first Black woman to be a Fed governor, is serving a 14-year term that began after her second Senate confirmation in 2023.

The effort to remove Cook comes as the administration has unleashed a campaign against diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), and intensifies Trump’s ongoing effort to gain influence over the US central bank and push it to lower interest rates.

Fed under pressure

Central bankers from around the world gathered on Thursday in Grand Teton National Park for the opening of the Kansas City Fed’s annual Jackson Hole symposium, where Powell will give a keynote speech on Friday, sketching out his view of the economy and, investors hope, where rates are headed.

“I would just say that I know her to be an outstanding economist and a person of high integrity,” Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack told Yahoo Finance at the event.

US Federal Housing Finance Agency director William Pulte, who referred the allegations of Cook’s wrongdoing to the Department of Justice this week, said they arose as part of regular investigations into mortgage fraud by his agency and were not a “witch-hunt”.

“Defrauding people is nothing new,” Pulte told Bloomberg Television. “I believe that she committed mortgage fraud.”  He said that public records clearly show fraud and that a special exemption should not be made for the powerful. He said the fraud is “self-evident”.

Cook has yet to expressly address Pulte’s accusation, saying only in Wednesday’s statement: “I do intend to take any questions about my financial history seriously as a member of the Federal Reserve, and so I am gathering the accurate information to answer any legitimate questions and provide the facts.”

The Fed has held borrowing costs steady all year in the 4.25 percent to 4.5 percent range out of concern that Trump’s tariffs could reignite inflation that is still running above the Fed’s 2 percent goal. Recent weaker labour market data – including a report showing job gains averaged a paltry 35,000 from May to July – has increased Fed policymaker concern that borrowing costs may be a bit too high, and financial markets are priced for the likelihood of a quarter-point interest-rate cut at the Fed’s September meeting.

That would be far short of the several percentage points that Trump has called for.

Trump can name a new chair when Powell’s term ends in May. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who is leading the search, has nearly a dozen candidates, and all have voiced their support for big rate cuts and big changes to the central bank. Traditionally, Fed chairs resign when their leadership term ends, but there is some speculation that Powell would stay on until his term as governor ends in 2028, denying Trump the chance to install more loyalists to consolidate his control over the central bank.

Trump has nominated Council of Economic Advisers Chairman Stephen Miran, a Fed critic and enthusiastic supporter of Trump’s tariffs and other policies, to serve at the Fed in the seat vacated by the surprise resignation this month of Adriana Kugler.