WASHINGTON, Aug. 26, 2025 (AP)

President Donald Trump today terminated Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook after Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte referred allegations of mortgage fraud to the Justice Department on Aug. 15. In a letter posted on Truth Social, Trump asserted that Cook’s purported “deceitful and potentially criminal conduct in a financial matter” provided “sufficient cause” for her immediate removal.

Pulte, a former private equity executive and grandson of homebuilder William Pulte, has used his FHFA post to publicly accuse prominent Trump opponents of falsifying mortgage documents to secure favorable loan terms. In mid-2021, Pulte alleged, Cook designated both a home in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and a condominium in Atlanta as her primary residence when applying for separate mortgages, a claim she disputes.

Cook, the first Black woman appointed to the Fed board, condemned her dismissal as unlawful. “I refuse to resign,” she declared in a statement, vowing to remain at the Fed “to support the American economy as I have since 2022” and indicating plans to challenge the firing in court.

The move marks the first time in the Federal Reserve’s 112-year history that a sitting governor has been removed by presidential fiat. Leading Democrats criticized Trump’s action as an unprecedented power grab that threatens the Fed’s independence, while allies praised Pulte’s campaign against what they describe as pervasive mortgage fraud among political adversaries.