US President Donald Trump has dismissed Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook following claims of mortgage fraud, in the latest instance of his assault on the central bank’s independence.
Cook’s departure will enable Trump to select her successor, potentially giving him greater influence over Fed policy. He has been pressing for reduced interest rates without success.
The Trump administration has targeted several political adversaries, including New York attorney general Letitia James and California senator Adam Schiff, on comparable charges of mortgage fraud – allegations both have denied.
Not a politician herself, Cook stands among a series of senior Fed officials who have resisted Trump’s call for rate reductions. Appointed by Joe Biden in May 2022, Cook is the first African American woman to serve on the Fed’s board, with her term set to conclude in 2038.
A renowned economist, Cook holds positions at Harvard University and Stanford University, and she once served on Barack Obama’s council of economic advisers.
The assault on Cook’s role at the Fed was spearheaded by Bill Pulte, a Trump nominee heading the US Federal Housing Finance Agency, who accused her of falsifying claims about her primary residences when securing mortgages in 2021.
Pulte questioned on X (formerly Twitter) how Cook could manage interest rates if she was supposedly lying to benefit her own situations. He forwarded the case to the Department of Justice for examination.
Trump evoked the allegations prior to Cook’s response, asserting on Truth Social, his social media platform, that she “must resign, now!!!”.
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/business/2025/aug/25/trump-fires-federal-reserve-governor-lisa-cook
