Last month, Trump said he had sacked Ms Cook but the Fed said she remains as a governor. However, a federal judge has temporarily blocked President Donald Trump from sacking Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook, who is part of the board responsible for setting US interest rates.
The ruling is a win for the central bank in an unprecedented legal battle with the White House over the independence of the Fed.
Trump Temporarily Blocked From Firing Fed Governor
Recently, the Cook vs Trump legal battle took a turn when the Federal Reserve governor presented evidence. Lisa Cook declared in financial forms that her Atlanta property would be used as a “vacation home” and not her primary residence. This statement as seen by BTCRepublic clearly dismisses President Trump’s allegations of “mortgage fraud.”
Judge Jia Cobb said “President Trump has not identified anything related to Cook’s conduct or job performance as a board member that would indicate that she is harming the board or the public interest by executing her duties unfaithfully or ineffectively.”
Cook Declares Atlanta Property Vacation Home
According to Reuters, the May 28, 2021, loan document from Cook’s credit union shows that she told the lender that her Atlanta property would not be her primary residence. She mentioned two other homes as her main residence, which weakens the allegation of mortgage fraud.
Later, she also presented a second document, the SF-86 supplemental questionnaire dated December 3, 2021. This document is to conduct a background check on the US officials. In that national security questionnaire from the Biden administration and the Senate, Cook listed Atlanta property as her “2nd home.”
So far, the White House and the FHFA have not responded to defend their argument against Cook.
Rejecting Pulte’s Allegation
Administration officials led by Bill Pulte accused Cook of conducting mortgage fraud by claiming Michigan and Atlanta properties her main residences. As a result, Trump moved to fire her last month, saying the evidence presented by the FHFA director was enough to warrant her removal “for cause.” A term usually interpreted as gross misconduct. But despite all the efforts made by Trump’s defence team, a federal judge from the US District Court in Washington, DC, temporarily blocked the president from sacking Cook.
According to the BBC, Judge Jia Cobb said, “President Trump has not identified anything related to Cook’s conduct or job performance as a board member that would indicate that she is harming the board or the public interest by executing her duties unfaithfully or ineffectively.”
“‘For cause’ thus does not contemplate removing an individual purely for conduct that occurred before they began in office,” the judge added.
White House Response to the Ruling
The White House officials and Pulte did not respond to comment on the Cook’s vacation home matter. But the defence team commented on Judge Cobb’s ruling and said they expect higher performance in the fed department.
White House said, “This ruling will not be the last say on the matter, and the Trump administration will continue to work to restore accountability and confidence in the Fed.”
