Fed Gov. Lisa Cook Addresses Trump’s Attempt To Remove Her. Lawyers Say There Is ‘No Legitimate Basis’ For It.

Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook addressed President Donald Trump's attempt to remove her, saying there is no basis for it.

Cook's lawyers said the claim, based on allegations that she claimed two different properties as her primary residence in mortgage documents, don't constitute "legitimate basis" for removing her.

They claimed that she was transparent with the lender and the process began with her "using the lender's website to seek information about a 'vacation home' mortgage — a clear indication of the loan type she was looking to acquire."

"The lender, which previously worked with Governor Cook to refinance her Massachusetts property earlier that year, knew that she had lived in Michigan for more than 15 years and worked full-time as a tenured professor at Michigan State University. Governor Cook gave no indication that she was leaving to take any new job in Atlanta," the document adds.

It goes on to say that different documents showed that cook "regularly indicated her 'primary
residence' or 'permanent residence' to be Michigan" and she confirmed the other one was a second home. "Governor Cook's actions demonstrate that there was no intentional misconduct and zero intent to defraud or mislead."

In June, the U.S. Supreme Court blocked Donald Trump's attempt to remove her immediately, leaving her in office while the legal challenge over her dismissal moves forward in the lower courts.

In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court ruled that Trump failed to provide Cook with the procedural protections required under federal law before attempting to remove her.

Chief Justice John Roberts, writing for the majority, said Cook had not been given the opportunity to properly respond to the allegations made against her before the dismissal was announced.

Roberts was joined by fellow conservative Justice Brett Kavanaugh and the court's three liberal justices in the vote. The majority emphasized that the decision addressed only whether the statutory removal procedures had been followed and did not determine whether Trump's allegations against Cook were valid, The New York Times reported back then.

"It at least remains an open question what precisely happened here, and indeed whether Cook committed 'gross negligence,' let alone 'deceitful and potentially criminal conduct,' as the president's letter alleges," Roberts wrote, adding that Cook must be allowed to challenge those accusations before any removal process can proceed.

Cook denied the allegations against her and welcomed the court's decision, saying it reaffirmed the Federal Reserve's obligation to make monetary policy decisions independently and free from political interference.

The case marks the first time a U.S. president has attempted to remove a sitting Federal Reserve governor since Congress established the central bank in 1913. It has become a closely watched test of the balance between presidential authority and the statutory independence granted to the Federal Reserve by Congress.

Cook was nominated to the Federal Reserve Board by former President Joe Biden and confirmed by the Senate in 2022. Before joining the central bank, she was a professor of economics and international relations at Michigan State University and previously served on the White House Council of Economic Advisers during the Obama administration. She also became the first Black woman to serve on the Federal Reserve Board of Governors in its more than 100-year history.