DOJ Official Reportedly Urges Powell To Oust Fed Governor Lisa Cook Amid Fraud Probe

Department of Justice (DOJ) official Ed Martin has reportedly urged Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell to remove Governor Lisa Cook from the central bank’s board.

According to a report by Bloomberg, the DOJ plans to investigate Cook for mortgage fraud. The request comes after President Donald Trump called on Cook to resign from her post on Wednesday. Trump’s demand came after Bill Pulte, the head of the agency that regulates mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and a Trump appointee, alleged that Cook claimed two primary residences, one in Ann Arbor and another in Atlanta, in 2021 to get more favorable mortgage terms. 

“I have no intention of being bullied to step down from my position because of some questions raised in a tweet,” Cook said in a statement issued by the Fed earlier this week. “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.”

If Cook is removed from the Fed’s board, Trump would have an opening to install a candidate aligned with his push for rate cuts—a policy he has repeatedly demanded while criticizing Chair Jerome Powell.

“At this time, I encourage you to remove Ms. Cook from your Board,” Martin wrote. “Do it today before it is too late! After all, no American thinks it is appropriate that she serve during this time with a cloud hanging over her.”

U.S. markets were trending lower ahead of Powell’s speech at Jackson Hole on Friday. The SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) was down 0.4% in midday trade, the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF (DIA) slipped 0.38% and the Nasdaq-100 tracking Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) was the worst hit, falling 0.5%. However, retail sentiment around QQQ on Stocktwits improved to ‘neutral’ from ‘bearish’ territory over the past day.

Read also: Trump’s Nearly $500M Civil Fraud Penalty Tossed By New York Appeals Court

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