WASHINGTON: The US Supreme Court on Monday blocked President Donald Trump from being able to immediately fire Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook over mortgage fraud allegations, a blow to his expansive view of presidential powers.
In a narrow 5-4 ruling, the court said that the president cannot remove officials at the independent Fed "for any reason or no reason."
The US central bank is a non-partisan institution that makes monetary policy for the world's largest economy, with governors appointed by the president after a Senate confirmation process.
Trump has exerted unprecedented pressure on the Fed to lower interest rates to boost economic activity, and his attempt to fire Cook was the first time a president had tried such a move in the bank's 111-year history.
US presidents are allowed to fire Fed governors "for cause," but the court ruled that Trump "failed to afford Cook the procedural protections to which she was entitled by statute."
Trump has accused Cook, the first Black woman to serve on the central bank's board of governors, of making false statements on one or more mortgage agreements, allegedly claiming two primary residences, one in Michigan and another in Georgia.
Cook denies the allegations. During arguments, Cook's lawyer said she had "at most" made an "inadvertent mistake" on her loan documents.