Trump vs Lisa Cook won’t be resolved in a timeframe that matters.
Story Background
President Donald Trump announced his intent to fire Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook on August 25, 2025, stating in a letter posted on Truth Social that her removal from the Federal Reserve Board of Governors was “effective immediately.”
Trump cited allegations of mortgage fraud as the reason for attempting to fire Cook. Specifically, he referenced claims by Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte, a Trump ally, who accused Cook of falsifying mortgage applications by claiming two properties (one in Atlanta, Georgia, and one in Ann Arbor, Michigan) as her primary residence in 2021, before she joined the Fed, potentially to secure lower interest rates.
If Trump could get rid of Cook, he would have four of seven voting Fed governors in his pocket.
Those governors could then block any regional Fed President appointments who were not to Trump’s liking on a February 2026 vote.
“We’ll have a majority very shortly,” said Trump at an August cabinet meeting. “So that’ll be great.”
Regional Fed Presidents
The terms for all 12 regional Federal Reserve Bank presidents expire in February 2026, and they will need to be approved for reappointment by the Board of Governors.
There are seven Fed governors.
Trump has 3 loyalists governors and needs either Fed Chair Jerome Powell to resign or Lisa Cook to be removed.
Neither is likely.
No Mortgage Fraud
There is no proof of mortgage fraud and strong evidence the claim is a fabrication.
I discussed the charge on September 14, in Hello President Trump, Have any Further Comments on the Fed’s Lisa Cook?
But Trump persisted and the Supreme Court decided to hear the case. For now, the Court let Cook stay on on the Fed.
Supreme Court Oral Arguments on Lisa Cook
On October 7, JDSupra reported Supreme Court Orders Oral Argument on President’s Decision to Remove Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook
In an order issued on October 1, the Supreme Court allowed Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook to remain in office—leaving in place for now the lower court orders putting on hold President Trump’s decision to remove her. The President had sought to remove Governor Cook “for cause” under the Federal Reserve Act’s for-cause removal provision. The Supreme Court scheduled oral argument on the issue for January 2026, indicating that it—and not the lower federal courts—will decide the legal issues that govern whether President Trump’s dismissal may take effect.
Trump v. Cook
Bloomberg chimes in on Trump v. Cook.
The Supreme Court is in session hearing disputes on emotive social issues. Its most financially consequential intervention came in a two-sentence ruling last Friday: The administration can’t fire Lisa Cook from her Federal Reserve governorship until the justices have ruled, and they won’t hear the case until January. It’s highly unlikely there will be a decision until next summer.
That’s critical, as engineering a reliable Trump majority on the FOMC requires Cook to be fired and replaced in time to vote on nominees for the Fed’s regional presidencies at the end of February. Those presidents will then serve for five years, making February the only chance to overhaul the FOMC in the Trump term.
This garnered little attention, possibly because it came after revelations first published by Reuters that showed the case against Cook was far weaker than its original presentation. She is alleged to have claimed two separate homes as her primary residence in mortgage documents — but forms show that she described the second as a vacation home.
Bloomberg found that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent once made the same error of describing different houses as his primary residence in mortgage applications.
To fill in the final piece of the story, the FOMC consists of 12 voting members. The voting members include the 7 governors, the New York Fed president, and 4 regional presidents on a rotating basis.
The current Fed governors are very unlikely to vote for any Trumpian parrots for the regional offices.
If this plays out as outlined ,Trump’s claim “We’ll have a majority very shortly,” just blew up. Trump will only have 3 of the 12 votes he needs to control the Fed.
Related Posts
On September 1, I noted A Complete Trump Take Over of the Fed is Easier than Most Believe
There are 12 voting members on the FOMC. How does Trump get a majority?
I explained how, but it required removal of Lisa Cook. Oops.
June 25, 2025: Trump Says Powell Has “Low IQ”, Mentions 3 or 4 Possible Replacements
Trump is on a very foolish mission to “Pack the Fed”.
March 29, 2025: Fed Chair Jerome Powell Revives the Words “Transitory Inflation”
Please note Powell revived from the dead, the word “Transitory”.
August 22, 2025: Powell Admits Prior Monetary Framework Was Hugely Flawed
The Fed just announced a new monetary framework. Is it any better?
The Powell Fed is no better than the Yellen Fed, the Bernanke Fed, or the Greenspan Fed.
They are a pack of groupthink charlatans.
However, the one thing worse than a clueless independent Fed is a Fed under total control of clueless politicians.
Even if you mistakenly believe Trump is not economically clueless, do you want an Elizabeth Warren clone running the next Fed?
That’s the risk if a president can fire Fed governors at will.
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