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Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook has defied calls from Donald Trump to resign, saying she has “no intention of being bullied to step down” after one of the president’s allies accused her of breaching mortgage rules.
Trump on Wednesday demanded Cook become the second Fed governor in less than a month to step down after Bill Pulte, head of the Federal Housing Financing Agency and frequent critic of the US central bank, called on the justice department to open a criminal investigation into alleged irregularities in her mortgage applications.
Cook on Wednesday evening said she had “learned from the media” that Pulte had posted on X that he was making a criminal referral based on mortgage applications made in 2021, a year before she joined the Fed.
She said: “I have no intention of being bullied to step down from my position because of some questions raised in a tweet.”
“I do intend to take any questions about my financial history seriously as a member of the Federal Reserve and so I am gathering the accurate information to answer any legitimate questions and provide the facts.”
The allegations against Cook, whose term runs to 2038, are the latest in a multipronged attack from the Trump administration on the central bank and its staff, including Fed chair Jay Powell.
The president has called Powell a “numbskull” and a “moron” over his refusal to comply with his wishes to aggressively cut interest rates. Trump and his allies have also sharply criticised a $2.5bn renovation of the Fed’s headquarters in Washington.
Removing Cook would give Trump the chance to nominate an economist who shares his desire for low borrowing costs for a coveted seat on the Fed’s board.
All seven members of the Fed board have a vote on the rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee, which has a dozen voting members. A majority of board members also have the authority to fire the heads of the 12 regional branches of the central bank.
In a Truth Social post on Wednesday morning, Trump said: “Cook must resign, now!!!”
The president’s demand came hours after Pulte claimed Cook had “falsified bank documents and property records to acquire more favourable loan terms, potentially committing mortgage fraud”.
Pulte claimed Cook had declared in financial documents that two homes bought within weeks of each other would both be her primary residence. He also alleged one of the homes was later advertised online for rent.
The administration’s assault on the central bank and other economic authorities has sparked concern among economists and lawmakers.
The president fired Bureau of Labor Statistics commissioner Erika McEntarfer earlier this month following a gloomy July jobs report, which Trump claimed had been rigged.
Trump’s pick to replace McEntarfer, EJ Antoni, has faced opprobrium from many economists who say he lacks the management experience to run a body of 2,000 federal workers.
Trump has also called on Powell to resign, although he has signalled that he plans to remain in his post until his term ends in May 2026.
Investors’ fears that the president could fire Fed officials eased earlier this year after the Supreme Court signalled it believed central bankers could not be fired by the executive branch other than “for cause”, a term characterised as gross malfeasance.
Senator Elizabeth Warren, the top Democrat on the Senate banking committee, criticised the president for targeting the central bank.
“President Trump has been scrambling for a pretext to intimidate or fire chair Powell and members of the Federal Reserve board while blaming anyone but himself for how his failed economic policies are hurting Americans,” Warren told the Financial Times.
“The president and his administration should not weaponise the federal government to illegally fire independent Fed board members,” she added.
Additional reporting by Joe Miller in Washington
