The US Supreme Court has ruled that President Donald Trump does not have the constitutional authority to fire a Federal Reserve governor without cause. In a landmark decision to preserve the central bank's independence, the court rejected the president's attempt to fire Governor Lisa Cook. Chief Justice John Roberts stated that Federal Reserve governors may be removed only "for cause," meaning the president cannot remove them for any reason or no reason.
As a result of the ruling, Lisa Cook will remain in her post as her lawsuit challenging the president's effort to fire her proceeds. The decision is a setback for Trump, who has alleged that Cook committed mortgage fraud and has complained that the Federal Reserve is not dropping interest rates quickly enough. The fight over her removal now returns to the lower courts.
While the court protected the Federal Reserve, it simultaneously expanded presidential power by upholding Trump's firings of the heads of other independent federal agencies. The conservative majority removed a 91-year-old precedent intended to prevent politics from interfering with independent regulatory agencies. This ruling gives the president a freer hand to exert control over various federal agencies, with the Federal Reserve serving as the one important exception.