Oct. 9, 2026, 10:25 AM EDT / Updated Oct. 9, 2026, 11:00 AM EDT
President Donald Trump on Friday signed an order directing the attorney general and other top federal officials to establish a committee to investigate Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook, in his latest attempt to fire her.
“By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, I hereby establish a committee of inquiry (Committee) to investigate allegations that Federal Reserve Governor Lisa D. Cook made false statements in connection with one or more mortgage instruments,” read a presidential memorandum posted to the White House website.
It said that the committee would “investigate the allegations against Governor Cook and report to me whether there is ‘cause’ for Governor Cook’s removal.”
“Governor Cook may submit a written position statement to the Committee regarding the allegations,” the memorandum said.
The unprecedented White House announcement comes after a top White House official in August wrote a letter to Cook, saying that Trump was considering removing her from the Federal Reserve board.
The White House memorandum said that Cook “shall appear at the hearing and be examined by the Committee,” as well as “present argument, written evidence, and written witness statements regarding the evidence and allegations.”
The committee is set to meet Nov. 5 for the hearing, two days after the midterm elections. No president has ever fired a top Fed official.
“In light of the President’s repeated statements that he has already decided to fire Governor Cook — regardless of the facts and evidence — we have grave doubts that this ‘hearing’ is a legitimate one that would conform to the law,” said Abbe Lowell and Norm Eisen, Cook’s attorneys.
“But if it is anything close to objective, the conclusion will be that Governor Cook did not commit mortgage fraud, leaving no cause to remove her from the Federal Reserve Board.”
Lowell and Eisen said they have engaged with the White House to determine if this is a “genuine” process and that Cook “welcomes the opportunity to present the facts so she can clear her name and demonstrate there is no legal basis to fire her.”
The memo follows a Supreme Court ruling in June, which allowed Cook to remain in her job for now. But the justices did not permanently block Trump from removing Cook, instead ruling that she had the right to an opportunity to defend herself.
Trump’s latest move stems from allegations first leveled against Cook in August 2025 by Federal Housing Finance Agency chief Bill Pulte. Trump amplified those allegations on social media and, citing a “criminal referral” he said Pulte had sent to the Justice Department, attempted to remove her from the Fed’s board.
Pulte alleged that Cook committed mortgage fraud, however documents obtained and reviewed by NBC News later revealed that Cook declared that the property in question was to be used as a “vacation home” and not her primary residence.
The Federal Reserve declined to comment on Friday’s developments.
Other top Trump administration officials, including Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent,reportedly have similar mortgage situations.
Former Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin have all called more than one property their “primary residence” on mortgage applications, according to a report last year from ProPublica.
Cook, a governor on the Federal Reserve’s board, has a permanent vote on interest rates. Trump and Pulte’s attacks on Cook came amid a long-running pressure campaign by the administration to get the U.S. central bank to cut interest rates.
“President Trump is convening an illegitimate show trial in his dangerous quest to illegally take over our nation’s central bank,” said Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., ranking member of the Senate Banking Committee, which oversees the Fed.
“Instead of playing judge in a kangaroo court of his own making, Trump should end the war in Iran and cancel his chaotic tariffs,” Warren said.
Trump also recently resumed his attacks on another Fed governor, Jerome Powell. Trump claimed Sept. 30 that the former chairman was complicit in cost overruns for a construction project at the central bank’s headquarters. However, an inspector general’s report found no wrongdoing.
Trump responded to the report by writing on social media, “He should be forced to resign, IMMEDIATELY! If he doesn’t resign, he should be sued, at the highest level, by the United States Government, for either corruption or incompetence.”
Following the post, Attorney General Todd Blanche told Bloomberg News, “We’re not reopening a criminal investigation into him.”
Powell has remained on the Fed’s board despite the end of his term as chair, breaking with tradition. As long as Powell remains on the board, the Trump administration is denied the opportunity to name a new board member of the president’s choice.
Cook has consistently maintained that she did nothing wrong.
Just weeks ago, Cook’s lawyer told the White House for a second time that, “There is no legal basis for President Trump to remove Governor Cook for cause.”
“An inadvertent error is not fraud, as the President and a third of his cabinet should know because they reportedly did the same thing,” Abbe Lowell said Aug. 26. “These attacks on Governor Cook are not about real estate paperwork; they are an attempt by President Trump to force the Federal Reserve to bend to his will.”
Lowell said he and Cook were prepared to continue to fight “any illegal attempt to remove Governor Cook.”
