Trump Says He’ll Oust Lisa Cook If She Fails To Step Down

If Lisa Cook, the governor of the Federal Reserve, does not step down, President Donald Trump has threatened to dismiss her. The Trump administration has criticized Cook, a former President Joe Biden appointee, over claims pertaining to her mortgages.
Trump would have the opportunity to change the composition of the central bank’s governing board, possibly for years to come, if he were successful in ousting Cook.

This was stated by Trump on Friday, August 23.

“What she did was bad,” the president told reporters who asked about Cook, an appointee of former President Joe Biden who has come under fire from the Trump administration over allegations about her mortgages.

“So I’ll fire her if she doesn’t resign,” he said during a surprise visit to The People’s House, a museum of the White House.

Trump appointed two of the existing seven governors, Michelle Bowman and Christopher Waller. They both disagreed with the Fed’s recent decision to keep interest rates unchanged.

When Adriana Kugler announced her resignation earlier this summer, another seat became available.

Trump would select Cook’s successor if he were successful in ousting her, which might guarantee that a majority of the board agrees with his monetary policy stance. Members of the board have 14-year terms.

Bill Pulte, the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, accused Cook in public this week of mortgage fraud in connection with allegations that she simultaneously accepted two residences as her primary residence.

Cook’s probe is still ongoing, and since making his accusations public, Pulte—a strong opponent of Federal Chairman Jerome Powell who has actively supported Trump’s demands for the central bank to cut interest rates—has been attacking Cook on social media.

In the past, Trump demanded that Cook step down immediately due to the accusations. Even though the central bank chairman is legally prohibited from doing so, Ed Martin, a Justice Department attorney who is generally regarded as a president-loyalist, pushed Powell to fire Cook as soon as possible.

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Cook has always supported Powell’s vote. After the Federal Open Market Committee’s most recent meeting last month, she voted with the majority to maintain rates at their current level.

Additionally, Cook has stated that she has no intention of being intimidated into resigning from her post due to some questions posed in a tweet.

“I learned from the media that FHFA Director William Pulte posted on social media that he was making a criminal referral based on a mortgage application from four years ago, before I joined the Federal Reserve,” Cook said in a statement.

“I do intend to take any questions about my financial history seriously as a member of the Federal Reserve and so I am gathering the accurate information to answer any legitimate questions and provide the facts,” she said.

Trump’s comments Friday morning came as Powell signaled that economic conditions “may warrant” interest rate cuts.

While the economy and labor market remain resilient, downside risks are rising and growth is declining — and Trump’s tariffs are once again raising inflation concerns, Powell said at the Fed’s annual conference in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.