White House Launches Three-Person Panel for Cook Case; Erosion of Central Bank Independence by Executive Authority Continues to Escalate

The White House this week announced the establishment of a three-person committee to launch a formal investigation into Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook. The focus of the investigation is whether she made false statements in a 2021 mortgage application, and whether such conduct, assessed under federal law, constitutes sufficient grounds for her removal. Cook's term on the Board of Governors runs through 2038.

According to Al Jazeera, the White House made the decision on Wednesday, with the notification posted on the White House website on Friday. The three-person panel is composed of the Assistant to the President for Economic Policy, the Chair of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and the Director of the Office of Government Ethics. A hearing will be held on November 5, requiring Cook to appear and respond.

Trump's attempt to remove Cook began in August 2025. Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte accused Cook of making inconsistent representations about two properties in a mortgage application before she joined the central bank. Cook has denied the allegations. She was appointed to the Federal Reserve Board of Governors by then-President Biden in 2022.

Trump subsequently announced Cook's removal, prompting Cook to file a lawsuit. In September 2025, a federal judge temporarily halted the removal order; in June of this year, the Supreme Court declined to execute the removal while the litigation was ongoing. Earlier this year, the Supreme Court issued a ruling making clear that the president may only remove a Federal Reserve governor upon sufficient grounds, following clear procedures and providing evidence.

Although the ruling allowed Cook to remain in office, it remanded the case to a federal district court for continued proceedings.

The investigation surrounding Cook is not an isolated move, but part of Trump's sustained pressure campaign on the Fed's interest rate policy. According to Al Jazeera's review, Trump previously launched an investigation into then-Fed Chair Powell over interest rate matters, and explicitly stated he would only appoint someone aligned with his rate-cutting views to head the institution. After Powell's term ended in May of this year, Trump appointed Kevin Warsh as his successor.

Shortly after the new chair took the helm, the Board of Governors last month made its first rate hike in three years, raising the benchmark rate by 25 basis points to 3.75%–4%. Al Jazeera noted that the decision came against a backdrop of rising oil prices driven by tensions with Iran and renewed inflationary pressure. The CME's FedWatch tool projects that in the final policy window before the midterm elections, the rate trajectory will most likely remain unchanged.

The November 5 hearing will determine whether the White House will once again initiate removal proceedings on "sufficient grounds." Right behind it, the Board of Governors under Warsh's leadership will face its final interest rate decision before the midterm elections. The dual pressure exerted by executive authority on central bank personnel and monetary policy will be put to a concentrated test in the coming weeks.