In a bold twist worthy of a political thriller, U.S. Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook is taking President Trump to court to keep her seat on the Fed’s seven-member board. 😲 Her lawyer, Abbe Lowell, says the president’s firing attempt is based on a mere referral letter and “lack any factual or legal basis.”
Just one day earlier, Trump announced he would oust Cook— the first Black woman ever on the Fed’s governing body— over alleged “deceitful and potential criminal conduct” tied to two mortgages she took out in 2021. He claimed he had “sufficient cause” to fire her after she listed properties in Michigan and Georgia as primary residences on mortgage applications.
But Cook’s team points out those loans were public record during her 2022 Senate confirmation. Peter Conti-Brown, a Fed scholar at Wharton, called the idea of retroactive removal “incongruous with the entire concept of ‘for cause’ removal.” Governors serve 14-year terms precisely to shield monetary policy from political pressure.
This showdown goes beyond personal drama. Trump has long pushed for lower interest rates and even threatened to replace Fed Chair Jerome Powell. Removing Cook would let him stack the board with allies like economist Stephen Miran or former World Bank head David Malpass. 🔥
Markets felt the tension immediately—Dow futures and Asian stocks slipped after the firing order and renewed talk of tariffs and export controls. 📉 Now, with Cook in court and Trump saying he’ll respect any ruling, the battle for Fed independence is on center stage.
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Fed Governor Cook will sue to keep her job as Trump mulls replacement
cgtn.com
