President Donald Trump is once again pursuing the removal of Federal Reserve Board Governor Lisa Cook, reviving a campaign that the Supreme Court blocked earlier this year.
The White House said this week that Trump is “considering” firing Cook, sending a letter signed by Deputy Chief of Staff Dan Scavino that was first reported by ABC News.
The letter alleges that Cook committed crimes potentially punishable by up to 30 years in prison, and that her conduct demonstrated negligence calling into question her trustworthiness as a Fed governor.
Cook has been given three weeks to respond to the allegations, which the administration had originally leveled against her last year when Trump first moved to remove her.
The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in late June to uphold a lower court decision blocking Trump from firing Cook while her lawsuit challenging the dismissal remained pending.
Chief Justice John Roberts wrote that Cook was entitled to notice and an opportunity to respond to charges before any removal “for cause,” but the ruling left open the door for Trump to try again after following those steps.
The letter states: “Even if your conduct does not rise to the level of a felony offense, it appears to demonstrate a level of gross negligence in financial transactions that calls into question your competence and trustworthiness as a financial regulator.”
Cook’s attorney Abbe Lowell pushed back sharply, saying the allegations “are as baseless now as they were a year ago when President Trump tried to remove Governor Cook and interfere with the independence of the Federal Reserve.”
Lowell added in a statement: “No matter what President Trump tries to do next, this much is clear under the facts and Supreme Court precedent — there is no valid cause for removing Governor Cook.”
Cook, a Michigan State University economist, was the first Black woman to serve as a Fed governor and was appointed by President Joe Biden in 2022 to a term set to expire in 2038.
Trump originally cited mortgage fraud allegations when he first sought to remove Cook, charges she denied and characterized as a pretext rooted in monetary policy disagreements rather than any genuine legal concern.
The broader push against Cook is part of a sustained effort by Trump and his allies to reshape the Fed’s Board of Governors with members more aligned with the president’s preference for lower interest rates.
This latest move against Cook marks the second time this week Trump has revived an action previously blocked by the Supreme Court, following a new executive order on birthright citizenship issued earlier in the week.
Legal experts widely expect the renewed effort to trigger fresh court battles examining both the merits of the mortgage fraud claims and whether Trump has satisfied the procedural standard for a for-cause removal of a Fed governor.
