The U.S. Justice Department has reportedly opened a mortgage fraud probe into Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, whom President Donald Trump has been trying to fire.
Reuters and the Wall Street Journal both reported on the criminal probe. Reuters cited documents it has seen as well as an anonymous source familiar with the probe. The Journal cited multiple anonymous sources familiar with the probe.
“Predictably and recognizing the flaws in challenging their illegal firing of Governor Cook, the administration is scrambling to invent new justifications for its overreach," said Abbe David Lowell, a lawyer for Cook, in a statement.
"This Justice Department – perhaps the most politicized in American history – will do whatever President Trump demands. He wants cover, and they are providing it," Lowell said.
Ed Martin, a Justice Department official and Trump loyalist, is leading the probe, according to the reports. Martin has been designated by Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate potential mortgage fraud by public officials. Martin took on that role after failing in his bid to become the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia. North Carolina Republican Senator Thom Tillis (R-North Carolina) decided not to support the nomination due to Martin's support for defendants in the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
