What happened
President Donald Trump Thursday asked the Supreme Court for permission to immediately oust Federal Reserve Board Governor Lisa Cook, escalating his unprecedented effort to seize control of the independent U.S. central bank. Trump petitioned Chief Justice John Roberts for an administrative stay that would effectively remove Cook from the Fed board before the full court considered his emergency appeal.
Who said what
Trump’s request sets up a “key test of presidential power with potentially huge economic consequences,” The New York Times said. While the high court’s conservative majority has “repeatedly allowed” Trump to “at least provisionally” fire other nominally independent agency heads without a stated reason, the justices have also “suggested that the Fed may be uniquely insulated from presidential meddling under the law.”
Trump’s “incursion on the Federal Reserve” represents the “culmination of his bid to assume control of all facets of the executive branch,” no matter their intended insulation, said Politico. The Justice Department argues that unsubstantiated allegations of mortgage fraud, “made by a Trump political appointee,” give the president sufficient “cause” to fire Cook, The Wall Street Journal said. Cook and her lawyers deny the allegations, calling them a “pretext for her firing to vacate a seat” on the Fed board and pointing to exculpatory documents.
What next?
Cook’s lawsuit challenging her ouster will continue in federal court — where a judge and appellate court have blocked the firing as likely unlawful — regardless of whether Roberts grants Trump’s request. The next scheduled Fed meeting begins Oct. 28.
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