The US Supreme Court has shown signs of pushing back against President Donald Trump's attempt to fire a Federal Reserve governor, in a case that tests the independence of the central bank. During oral arguments on Wednesday, the justices appeared sceptical of Trump's removal of Lisa Cook, whom he accused of mortgage fraud.
Trump fired Cook in August, citing allegations that she claimed multiple properties as her primary home to secure a lower mortgage rate. Cook's lawyers have described the error as an inadvertent mistake. A lower court temporarily reinstated her, and the White House appealed to the Supreme Court.
The case raises questions about due process and what constitutes valid cause for removing a Fed official. The law allows the president to dismiss Fed governors only for cause, but does not define the term. Legal experts note that the court's scrutiny may not amount to a broad check on executive power, but rather carve out a special exception for the central bank.
Trump has previously fired officials from other independent agencies, including the National Labor Relations Board and the Federal Trade Commission, and the Supreme Court allowed those dismissals to stand. Conservative justices have shown support for the unitary executive theory, which holds that the president should control all executive branch officials.
The Fed is designed to be independent from political pressure, and Trump has repeatedly attacked its chair, Jerome Powell, for not lowering interest rates quickly enough. The justice department recently opened a criminal investigation into Powell over testimony about renovations at the Fed's headquarters.
