The White House Is Trying Again to Fire a Fed Governor — After the Supreme Court Already Said No Once

The White House sent Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook a letter dated August 5, 2026, giving her until August 26 — 21 days — to submit a written response and supporting evidence addressing allegations that she made false statements on one or more mortgage agreements. The letter was sent by Dan Scavino, the White House deputy chief of staff and director of the Office of Presidential Personnel, and states there is "sufficient reason to believe" the allegations against her.

This is not the administration's first attempt. The effort to remove Cook began in 2025, and roughly six weeks before this letter, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 to block her immediate dismissal. That should have been the end of it — except Chief Justice John Roberts's opinion included a specific opening: it did not prevent the administration from "trying again," provided Cook received proper notice and a meaningful opportunity to contest the allegations. The August 5 letter, with its detailed allegation and a 21-day response window, reads as a direct attempt to satisfy exactly that procedural bar the Court set.

Cook has not been charged with any crime. Through her attorneys, she has denied ever committing mortgage fraud. The underlying facts of the allegations are contested, and nothing about this letter resolves them — it starts a clock on a process, not a verdict.

What makes this significant beyond Cook's own position is the precedent it's testing. A Federal Reserve governor sits on the body that sets US interest-rate policy specifically because Congress designed that role to be insulated from White House pressure, on the theory that a central bank that can be reshaped by whoever occupies the presidency loses the independence that makes its policy credible to markets. The Supreme Court's earlier ruling didn't settle whether a president can remove a Fed governor for cause — it said this particular attempt hadn't followed the right process. This second attempt is the administration's chance to find out whether the underlying power exists at all, and the outcome will apply well beyond Cook to how much latitude any future president has over the Fed's composition.