The Trump administration renewed its effort to fire Lisa Cook, the Federal Reserve governor he tried to remove last year before the Supreme Court blocked her ousting on procedural grounds.
In a White House letter dated Aug. 5 and signed by deputy chief of staff Dan Scavino, Cook was given 21 days to respond to allegations of mortgage fraud, claims Cook has repeatedly denied and for which she has not been criminally charged.
President Donald Trump tried to fire Cook last August, citing those unproven allegations. The Supreme Court said in October that she could not be removed from her position as the case played out. In June, the justices issued a 5-4 ruling siding with Cook, saying she was owed notice and a chance to respond to the allegations before being fired “for cause.” The court did not rule on the merits of the allegations surrounding her firing — effectively leaving the door open for the administration to attempt to remove her again.
The letter referenced the court’s decision when demanding a written explanation for “false statements” made on her mortgage agreements, saying Cook has had over 10 months and “ample opportunity to do so.”
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“Nevertheless, the Supreme Court recently determined that you are entitled to notice of the allegations against you and an opportunity to respond prior to your removal,” the letter says after detailing several allegations related to mortgage fraud. “This is your opportunity to respond.”
Appointed by former President Joe Biden, Cook is the first Black woman to serve on the Federal Reserve Board of Governors. Currently, three Trump appointees sit on the seven-person board, and the president has repeatedly expressed a desire to have a “majority.”
In the Supreme Court’s decision, Chief Justice John Roberts wrote in a footnote that nothing stops the president from “trying again” to fire the governor — only that she must be given due process. Trump signaled he would take “appropriate action immediately” in a Truth Social post following the ruling, saying the decision was made “on a strictly procedural basis.”
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