The Rupert Murdoch-owned Wall Street Journal has blasted Donald Trump for hounding Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook during his dispute with the U.S. central bank.
The WSJ editorial board hit out at the “ominous turn in political lawfare” Wednesday after Bill Pulte, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) director and lapdog for Trump, accused Cook of mortgage fraud and called for a criminal investigation.
Pulte alleged that Cook, an appointee of former President Joe Biden, falsified documents to claim her primary residences were in Michigan and Georgia to obtain better mortgage terms. He has also alleged that Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell might “be complicit with Cook’s alleged fraud” without providing evidence.
Trump is backing Pulte’s pressure campaign, posting on Truth Social that Cook “must resign” over the claims she strongly denies.
In its editorial, the WSJ accused the Trump administration of “weaponizing” mortgage fraud and turning it into the president’s latest revenge tool against political opponents.
The board noted that the attacks on Cook arrive amid Trump’s long-running feud with Powell over his refusal to slash interest rates.
“This is nasty business. Mr. Powell doesn’t have the authority to remove Ms. Cook, and why would he know anything about her mortgages? The context for Mr. Pulte’s accusations is relevant,” the board wrote. “Mr. Trump is angry that the Fed hasn’t cut interest rates. Ms. Cook voted with Mr. Powell to stand pat at last month’s meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee.
“Mr. Trump has resisted firing Mr. Powell because advisers have warned that doing so could rattle markets and spur a legal challenge. So now he and his Dobermann at the FHFA are trying to bludgeon Ms. Cook into supporting a rate cut under threat of removal and criminal prosecution.”
Cook is not the only Trump adversary accused of mortgage fraud.
In July, while scrambling to distract from the Jeffrey Epstein files fallout, Trump revived long-disputed allegations of mortgage fraud against California Sen. Adam Schiff. The Democrat has been a nemesis of Trump for years, serving as the lead impeachment manager during Trump’s first trial in 2020 and spearheading the House Intelligence Committee’s probe into Russian election interference in 2016.
The Trump administration is also pursuing mortgage fraud investigations against New York Attorney General Letitia James, who prosecuted Trump for filing fraudulent financial statements for years.
“The FHFA director says he’s doing his job by investigating potential mortgage fraud, and that nobody is above the law. That’s fair as far as it goes, but blasting weighty allegations via social media or leaks is an ugly way for government regulators to behave,” the WSJ board wrote.
“One reason we opposed the Biden prosecutions of Mr. Trump is because political lawfare tends to boomerang, and here we are. Weaponizing the housing regulator won’t build confidence in America’s institutions or markets.”
The White House and the Federal Housing Finance Agency did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Daily Beast.
The post Murdoch Paper Torches Trump Revenge Plot Against Fed Official appeared first on The Daily Beast.
