Journalism of Courage
US Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook has filed a lawsuit to block her removal from the central bank’s board after President Donald Trump announced earlier this week that he was firing her.
Cook’s lawsuit, filed Thursday morning, asks a judge to declare Trump’s move “unprecedented and illegal” affirming that she remains a sitting member of the Federal Reserve, which plays a crucial role in setting US interest rates.
The White House, however, defended Trump’s decision.
“The President determined there was cause to remove a governor who was credibly accused of lying in financial documents from a highly sensitive position overseeing financial institutions,” White House spokesman Kush Desai said in a statement on Thursday, CNN reported. “The removal of a governor for cause improves the Federal Reserve Board’s accountability and credibility for both the markets and American people.”
Cook has also sought emergency court intervention to keep her on the board while the case unfolds. “Without emergency relief, defendants are now likely to allow an unexpired vacancy to occur for which President Trump has indicated he is ready to fill,” her lawyers wrote.
The case has been assigned to US District Judge Jia Cobb, a Biden appointee, who has not yet scheduled a hearing.
Cook’s lawsuit argues that her firing violated her due process rights, saying she was entitled to proper notice of the allegations and a chance to respond.
“Governor Cook received neither notice nor a hearing before her purported firing,” her attorneys wrote. “This allegation about conduct that predates Governor Cook’s Senate confirmation has never been investigated, much less proven.”
Her legal team also accused Trump of attempting to stretch the definition of “cause” to target officials who disagree with him.
“President Trump does not have the power to unilaterally redefine ‘cause’ – completely unmoored to caselaw, history, and tradition – and conclude, without evidence, that he has found it,” the lawsuit states.
Trump had announced Cook’s removal in a letter posted to social media on Monday, citing mortgage fraud allegations raised by Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte.
Trump and his allies accuse Cook of claiming two separate properties as her primary residence. The Justice Department has said it will review the allegations, though Cook has not been charged with any crime.
In her filing, Cook asked the court to declare that “an unsubstantiated allegation of mortgage fraud prior to a Governor’s confirmation is not cause for removal” under federal law.
