Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook requested an emergency injunction to block President Donald Trump’s attempt to fire her over allegations that she committed mortgage fraud while purchasing a home and condo in 2021, the Associated Press reports.
If the emergency order is granted, it would block Trump from firing Cook and enable her to remain on the seven-member board of governors while her lawsuit seeking to overturn the firing progresses through the courts.
Her case is widely expected to end up at the U.S. Supreme Court.
If Cook’s firing is allowed to stand, it could erode the Fed’s independence from day-to-day politics. In the Fed’s 112-year history, no president has ever fired an agency governor.
The law governing the Fed says the president cannot fire a governor over disagreements on interest rate policy, but the president may be able to fire a Fed governor “for cause,” which has usually been interpreted to mean inefficiency, neglect of duty or malfeasance.
Cook’s lawyers assert that it also refers only to conduct while in office and say she was entitled to a hearing and an opportunity to rebut the charges.
