President Trump escalated his pressure campaign against the Federal Reserve this week by calling on Lisa Cook, a governor of the central bank, to resign or be fired, pointing to unconfirmed allegations that she committed mortgage fraud.
The issue is hanging over the central bank on Friday, the day that Fed Chair Jerome H. Powell delivered a pivotal speech on the nation’s economic outlook. In it, Mr. Powell sent his strongest signal yet that the central bank was preparing to restart interest rate cuts soon.
In hopes of forcing down interest rates, Mr. Trump has relentlessly attacked the politically independent Fed and its members. Until recently most of his attention has been focused on Mr. Powell.
But on Wednesday, Mr. Trump urged Ms. Cook to resign after Bill Pulte, the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, accused her of falsifying records to obtain more favorable terms on mortgages. Mr. Pulte said the agency had referred the issue to the Justice Department.
On Thursday, Ed Martin, an official at the Justice Department, called for a closer examination in a letter sent to Mr. Powell. He also encouraged Mr. Powell to fire Ms. Cook, although the Fed chair has no legal authority to remove her.
Ms. Cook, the first Black woman to serve as a Fed governor, was an economics professor at Michigan State University when former President Joseph R. Biden Jr. nominated her for the Fed board in 2022.
Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.
Thank you for your patience while we verify access.
Already a subscriber? Log in.
Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
The post What to Know About the Allegations Against Lisa Cook of the Fed appeared first on New York Times.
