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Cook’s Lawyer Rejects Trump’s Push for Dismissal · GNN Daily Breaking News

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: A high-stakes confrontation between the White House and the Federal
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: Reserve has intensified as the lawyer representing Lisa Cook, a
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  Speaker 1: sitting Fed governor, declared that there are no legal grounds
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  Speaker 1: for her removal despite President Donald Trump's repeated calls to
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  Speaker 1: oust her. Cook, who joined the board in 2022 and
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  Speaker 1: is the first Black woman to serve as a Federal
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  Speaker 1: Reserve governor, has been a vocal advocate for maintaining the
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  Speaker 1: Fed's dual mandate, balancing inflation control with employment support. Her
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  Speaker 1: tenure has coincided with contentious debates over interest rates, inflation management,
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  Speaker 1: and the pace of economic recovery. Trump has accused Cook
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  Speaker 1: of embracing what he calls anti-growth orthodoxy, arguing that her
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  Speaker 1: policy positions have slowed economic expansion. He has urged allies
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  Speaker 1: in Congress to back legislation that would make it easier
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  Speaker 1: to remove sitting governors. But Cook's lawyer pushed back firmly,
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  Speaker 1: noting that under federal law, governors are appointed to 14-year
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  Speaker 1: terms and can only be removed for cause a standard
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  Speaker 1: requiring proof of misconduct or incapacity. Policy disagreements alone, the
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  Speaker 1: lawyer emphasized, do not meet that threshold. Legal experts agree.
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  Speaker 1: They point out that the independence of the Federal Reserve
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  Speaker 1: is designed to insulate monetary policy from political pressure. Attempts
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  Speaker 1: to fire a governor over policy differences would likely trigger
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  Speaker 1: a constitutional clash, with courts defending the Fed's autonomy. The
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  Speaker 1: dispute has sparked sharp reactions. Supporters of Cook highlight her
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  Speaker 1: credentials as a respected economist and argue that Trump's attacks
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  Speaker 1: threaten the central bank's credibility. critics aligned with Trump contend
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  Speaker 1: that the Fed has become unaccountable and should be more
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  Speaker 1: responsive to elected leaders. For the Fed, the stakes are enormous.
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  Speaker 1: The institution's independence is considered a cornerstone of U.S. financial stability,
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  Speaker 1: ensuring that decisions about interest rates are based on economic
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  Speaker 1: data rather than political expediency. If Trump were to succeed
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  Speaker 1: in removing Cook, it could set a precedent that fundamentally
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  Speaker 1: alters the balance of power between the executive branch and
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  Speaker 1: the central bank. For now, Cook remains in her position,
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  Speaker 1: continuing to shape policy alongside Chair Jerome Powell and other governors.
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  Speaker 1: But the legal battle underscores the growing tension between political
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  Speaker 1: leadership and monetary authority, a struggle that could define the
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  Speaker 1: future of U.S. economic governance.