President Trump has said will fire Lisa Cook over alleged financial fraud, which could hand him more control of the Fed.
United States President Donald Trump has said he will fire Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook over unproven claims of mortgage fraud, an unprecedented step which could test the boundaries of presidential power over the central bank’s independence.
In a letter posted on social media on Monday, Trump told Cook he has “sufficient cause to remove you from your position”. Trump claims that Cook misleadingly indicated that she intended to live in two homes as her primary residence in 2021.
Cook, appointed to the Federal Reserve (or Fed) board in 2022 by former President Joe Biden, has yet to provide a detailed account of the transactions since the matter was raised by the Federal Housing Finance Agency last week.
Trump’s letter, which has escalated his fight to control the Fed, spooked financial markets. Both the US dollar and long-dated treasuries fell on Tuesday. The president has made little secret of his desire for the US central bank to spur growth by lowering interest rates.
