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President Trump said Monday he has fired Lisa Cook from the Federal Reserve's Board of Governors — a dramatic move after months of public attacks against the central bank.

The president announced Cook's removal from the Fed board in a letter posted to Truth Social that accused Cook of making false statements on mortgage documents, actions he claimed were "gross negligence" and "potentially criminal." Mr. Trump had previously urged Cook to resign, she had "no intention of being bullied to step down from my position because of some questions raised in a tweet."

The move is an early test of Mr. Trump's power to terminate members of the Federal Reserve. Under federal law, Fed board members and can only be fired by the president "for cause." Cook has served on the Fed since 2022, and her current term runs until 2038.

Mr. Trump wrote in a to Cook: "I have determined that there is sufficient cause to remove you from your position."

In a statement Cook's attorney provided to the New York Times late Monday, she said, "I will not resign."

The statement said that there is no cause under the law for Mr. Trump to fire her. Attorney Abbe David Lowell said they "will take whatever actions" needed to prevent Cook's firing, the New York Times reported.

TheNews has reached out to the Fed for comment.

The allegations against Cook were leveled earlier this month by Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte, who has positioned himself as an ally of Mr. Trump's. Pulte to Attorney General Pam Bondi accusing Cook of taking out mortgages for homes in Michigan and Georgia in 2021, and telling banks in both cases that she planned to use the homes as her primary residences — in what Pulte alleged was a fraudulent attempt to gain more favorable lending terms.

Last week, Mr. Trump : "Cook must resign, now!!!"

Cook said in a statement released through the Fed: "I do intend to take any questions about my financial history seriously as a member of the Federal Reserve and so I am gathering the accurate information to answer any legitimate questions and provide the facts."

Pulte has also made mortgage fraud allegations against California Sen. and New York Attorney General , two Democratic officials and Trump foes who . Notably, James's office sued Mr. Trump and his company for loan fraud before his return to the White House, securing an almost $400 million civil court judgment that was by a New York state appellate court last week.

Cook's firing came after Mr. Trump spent months and its chair, Jerome Powell, over the central bank's handling of interest rates.

Cook, Powell and 10 other Fed officials sit on a committee that controls the nation's monetary policy and sets target interest rates, with a dual mandate of keeping inflation low and employment levels high. This work is typically done independently, with little to no input from political leaders.

The Fed hiked interest rates to decades-long highs in 2022 and 2023 in a bid to quell inflation. After some cuts last year, the central bank has chosen to leave rates at relatively high levels so far this year, fearing that inflation could come roaring back or that Mr. Trump's tariff strategy could cause consumer prices to jump. The trade-off is that higher interest rates can lead to slower economic growth, and they make it more expensive for American consumers and businesses to borrow.

Mr. Trump has lashed out over this strategy, nicknaming Powell "Too Late." The president has  of firing Powell, in some cases accusing him of mismanaging a project to renovate the Fed's headquarters. 

that interest rate cuts could be on the horizon, as the Fed tries to prevent inflation from spiking without triggering higher unemployment. During a speech in Jackson Hole, he said the Fed will "proceed carefully," but recent shifts "may warrant adjusting our policy stance."

Even without firings, the president could reshape the Fed board as positions open up. If the Senate confirms Mr. Trump's replacements for Cook and another Biden nominee who , four of the Fed's seven governors will be Trump appointees — making up most of the Fed's board of governors and one-third of the 12-member interest rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee.

Currently, just two Fed board members are Trump picks, both from his first term: Powell and board member Christopher Waller.

Mr. Trump is widely expected not to appoint Powell to another four-year term as Fed chair when his current one ends in May 2026, though he hasn't announced a successor yet. Meanwhile, Mr. Trump  his economic adviser Stephen Miran to serve on the Fed board until January 2026, replacing Adriana Kugler, the Biden appointee who left the board earlier this month. It's unclear who he will pick to replace Cook.