Donald Trump and his Cabinet are meeting, the day after he ramped up his battle with the US central bank
The president and his secretaries spoke during the public portion of the meeting for nearly three-and-a-half hours, with Trump accusing Cook of being "not above board"
The US president took to social media overnight to say he plans to "immediately" fire Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook over mortgage fraud allegations
Cook says Trump has no authority to remove her, and her lawyer says they will file a lawsuit challenging "this illegal action"
It's a major escalation of the president's ongoing attempts to get the Fed to lower interest rates
Lisa Cook is planning to sue Trump over his decision last night to remove her from office.
Her lawyer, Abbe David Lowell, says the president "has no authority" to remove the governor.
"His attempt to fire her, based solely on a referral letter, lacks any factual or legal basis. We will be filing a lawsuit challenging this illegal action,” he says in a statement.
Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from the White House
Image source, Getty ImagesHere at the White House, Cabinet meetings were once considered closed-door affairs.
During the approximately two years I was covering the latter half of the Biden administration I only recall one cabinet meeting - in September 2024 - in which the press was invited for brief remarks.
At least two other cabinet meetings - in 2021 and 2022 - also opened to the press for opening remarks, a long-standing practice of previous administrations.
Things are different in the Trump administration.
This is his seventh cabinet meeting since January, and many have turned into extremely lengthy sessions, which are sometimes preceded by each cabinet member in the room taking turns pointing to perceived successes in their departments.
The open portion of one which I attended in March lasted 47 minutes. The most recent one clocked in at nearly two hours.
In his first three cabinet meetings alone, Trump took nearly 100 questions, on a extremely wide range of domestic and foreign policy topics.
Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt has repeatedly pointed to this as evidence that this administration is the most "transparent" in US history.
Reporters in the room - which are drawn from the day's press pool - aren't in any way limited in terms of what they can ask.
Judging from conversations I've had with reporters this morning, Lisa Cook and the US economy will be extremely high on the agenda today.
President Trump is set to meet with his Cabinet members shortly. It comes a day after he posted on social media that he has ordered the immediate removal of Lisa Cook. But what is a Cabinet meeting?
On a semi-regular basis the US president gathers his Cabinet members for a meeting to discuss his administration's agenda.
Trump has made the gatherings more frequent and more public than most presidents had done so before him.
At today's meeting will be Vice-President JD Vance, Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, Attorney General Pam Bondi and other key figures in Trump's administration.
Trump has made a habit of granting access to press as the meeting wraps up, and takes questions from reporters.
We'll be keeping across the latest developments today, stay with us.
Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from the White House
To Donald Trump's detractors, the firing of Lisa Cook is the latest salvo in a wider battle to seek more influence over the Fed, which is essentially the US central bank.
The Fed is a favourite topic of Trump's when he addresses the press, often criticising its decision not to lower interest rates.
Trump reserves his harshest criticism for Fed chair Jerome Powell, whom he - as recently as yesterday - refers to as "too late Powell", saying interest rates should have already been lowered this year.
He occasionally uses more colourful language, such as "numbskull" and "stubborn mule".
Last month, he publicly bickered with over building renovations at the Fed building in Washington. He's repeatedly floated the idea of firing him, only to back away from the idea.
Removing Cook would be something of a victory for Trump, as it would allow him to nominate someone else to her position.
Earlier this month Federal Reserve Governor Adriana Kugler resigned, paving the way for Trump to nominate economic adviser Stephen Miran to the board. Miran must still be confirmed by the Senate.
Image source, ReutersWall Street has opened hours after Trump said he ordered the removal of one of the US central bank's governors.
The stock market follows developments at the Fed keenly and is one indicator of how investors feel about major policy changes.
Overall, they appear to be sceptical and are waiting to see if the sacking actually comes to pass.
Here is how trading stands for the three major indexes at the moment:
Image source, Bloomberg via Getty ImagesFed Governor Lisa Cook has rebuffed Trump's attempt to remove her from her position.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, Cook disputes Trump's authority to fire her and says she is still at post.
“President Trump purported to fire me “for cause” when no cause exists under the law, and he has no authority to do so," the statement says. "I will not resign. I will continue to carry out my duties to help the American economy as I have been doing since 2022.”
Cook's lawyer Abbe David Lowell also says they will fight Trump's actions.
“President Trump has taken to social media to once again “fire by tweet” and once again his reflex to bully is flawed and his demands lack any proper process, basis or legal authority," Lowell says. "We will take whatever actions are needed to prevent his attempted illegal action.”
Image source, Getty ImagesDonald Trump says he has plans to "immediately" fire Lisa Cook over mortgage fraud allegations.
In order to do so he would need to find cause, as the Federal Reserve Act does not give the president license to remove a Fed official at will.
What has Trump accused her of?
In his Truth Social post, the president cited allegations that Cook may have falsified records to obtain a mortgage.
He said she signed two documents, two weeks apart, attesting that two homes in different states were both her primary residence.
"It is inconceivable that you were not aware of your first commitment when making the second. It is impossible that you intended to honor both," he wrote.
CNN has obtained and reviewed, external the mortgage documents in question and found she did claim two primary residences but it is unclear whether she informed either lender of the fact.
She has not been charged with any wrongdoing.
In a statement emailed to reporters through the law office of the lawyer Abbe Lowell, she remained firm in her rejection that Trump had the right to fire her.
We'll have more on her response to Trump's accusations in our next post.
Image source, ReutersAs the central bank of the US, the Federal Reserve is responsible for:
One of the most visible activities it undertakes is to set interest rates. This has a big impact on the nation's financial conditions by influencing how much money people can borrow.
The Fed functions as a federal agency and is considered to be independent within government - its decisions do not require the president's approval, though it is accountable to Congress.
Image source, ReutersLisa Cook - the Federal Reserve governor who finds herself at the centre of Donald Trump's ire - was appointed to the role in 2022 by Democratic President Joe Biden, becoming the first African American to serve in the role.
Her term is due to end in 2038.
Prior to holding her post on the Federal Reserve board, she served on Barack Obama's Council of Economic Advisers and worked at the US Treasury.
There are seven governors on the Fed's board and they each play a key role in setting the monetary policy of the US.
They make up the majority of the committee that decides the level of US interest rates and aims to keep prices stable and unemployment as low as possible.
Though Cook is not a politician, the respected economist is among a string of senior Fed policymakers who has voted in recent months to keep interest rates on hold this year.
If Cook was ousted from her role, it would allow Trump to choose a replacement. This would in effect help him leverage more control over the policy at the Fed.
The move has caused an outcry from Democrats who say it amounts to unprecedented political interference.
Ana Faguy
Reporting from Washington DC
Welcome to our live coverage of US politics, where President Trump will soon meet his Cabinet members.
It comes a day after he posted on social media that he has ordered the immediate removal of Lisa Cook, a member of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, over mortgage fraud allegations.
Cook has since responded and said she would not step down from her position, and that Trump does not have the authority to remove her.
The move highlights Trump's ongoing conflict with Fed officials, including Cook and Fed Chairman Jerome Powell. Trump wants the Fed, the US central bank, to lower interest rates.
The Fed has long maintained its independence from politics, and has maintained interest rates at current levels during its past few meetings.
We expect Trump to answer media questions after his Cabinet meeting, so stick with us.