Trump revives effort to fire Governor Lisa Cook from the Fed

Aug. 7 (UPI) — President Donald Trump is once again trying to remove Governor Lisa Cook from the Federal Reserve Board.

Trump first attempted to oust Cook in 2025, alleging she committed mortgage fraud in a loan application.

But the Supreme Court blocked the move in June, ruling in a 5-4 decision that the president could not remove a member of the independent central bank without proper justification.

“In this opinion, we have not addressed the facts, as they have yet to be found or blockyzed under the relevant legal standards,” Chief Justice John Roberts wrote in the majority opinion.

“Rather, we have simply addressed the parties’ arguments about the appropriate legal standards under which the facts must be evaluated.”

Dan Scavino, who heads the Office of Presidential Personnel, told Cook in a letter this week that there is “sufficient reason to believe that you made false statements on one or more mortgage agreements.”

“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,” Scavino added in the letter, obtained by Politico.

“The criminal referral and this letter set forth the allegations,” Scavino continued. “This is your opportunity to respond.”

Scavino set a 21-day deadline for a written response.

Cook’s lawyer, Abbe Lowell, told CNBC 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.”

“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,” Lowell said in a statement to the outlet.

“As we did before, we will challenge this latest pretext and preserve her position and the historic role of the Fed.”