Moments after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s closely watched speech at the Jackson Hole symposium on Friday, President Donald Trump dramatically escalated his ongoing assault on the central bank’s leadership by threatening to fire governor Lisa Cook if she does not resign. The extraordinary move punctuated an already tense week for the central bank, as Trump has been criticizing Cook following allegations of mortgage fraud leveled by Bill Pulte, head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency and a Trump appointee.
As reported by CNBC, Trump made the threat on Friday, during an impromptu visit to the People’s House, a White House–focused educational museum. “What she did was bad,” he told reporters. “I’ll fire her if she doesn’t resign.”
