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President Donald Trump on Monday night removed Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook from the central bank’s board, escalating a dispute over allegations that she falsified documents to obtain favorable mortgage terms.
The decision followed Trump’s public call last week for Cook to resign, a request she declined. In a letter posted on Truth Social, Trump said the move was necessary to preserve confidence in the Fed.
“The Federal Reserve has tremendous responsibility for setting interest rates and regulating reserve and member banks,” Trump wrote.
“The American people must be able to have full confidence in the honesty of the members entrusted with setting policy and overseeing the Federal Reserve. In light of your deceitful and potentially criminal conduct in a financial matter, they cannot and I do not have such confidence in your integrity. I have determined that there is sufficient cause to remove you from your position,” he added.
Earlier this month, Federal Housing Finance Agency Director William Pulte alerted Attorney General Pam Bondi to allegations that Cook “falsified bank documents and property records to acquire more favorable loan terms, potentially committing mortgage fraud.” Pulte claimed Cook listed two different residences as her primary home, with the second designation occurring weeks after she took out a loan on her Michigan property.
The White House did not immediately provide further details on Trump’s decision, and Cook has not issued a public statement. The Federal Reserve declined to comment on personnel matters.
Allegations of mortgage fraud have increasingly become a focus of Justice Department inquiries into Democratic officials. California Sen. Adam Schiff and New York Attorney General Letitia James have also faced scrutiny over real estate transactions, though neither has been charged with wrongdoing.
Cook, an economist and professor before joining the Fed, was appointed to the board during the Biden administration and was one of the first black women to hold the position.
Her removal marks a rare and high-profile intervention by the White House into the central bank’s leadership, emphasizing the Trump administration’s broader effort to tie alleged financial misconduct by Democrats to issues of public trust in government institutions.