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Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook is refusing to resign after President Donald Trump claimed in a letter posted to Truth Social that he had removed her from office “effective immediately.”

The bizarre saga has put both in a constitutional power struggle over the White House’s authority and whether the central bank is truly independent of political influence.

Cook, first appointed to the Fed’s Board of Governors by then-President Joe Biden in 2022, is resisting pressure to resign after Trump cited the U.S. Constitution and the Federal Reserve Act of 1913 as giving him the authority to remove her from the Federal Reserve Board “for cause.”

The Republican argued in the letter, also sent to Cook on Friday and first published on Truth Social, that there is “sufficient reason to believe that Lisa Cook has made false statements on one or more mortgage agreements.” Trump later fired back at Cook on Truth Social, writing, “I have determined that faithfully enacting the law requires your immediate removal from office.”

Bill Pulte, a Trump appointee to an agency that regulates Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, filed a criminal referral on Aug. 15 with the Justice Department, accusing Cook of falsifying bank documents and real estate records.

Cook has been accused of fraudulently listing two primary residences, one in Ann Arbor and another in Atlanta, on two separate mortgages in 2021 to secure better mortgage terms on her properties.

Appearing on Fox Business’ “Mornings with Maria” last month, Pulte, who has been investigating the loans with his legal team, characterized the allegations against Cook.

“It’s very odd to see people try to twist back way sideways and upside down to justify mortgage fraud,” Pulte said. “This is a very serious crime. Mortgage fraud carries up to 30 years in prison. I believe the president has ample cause to fire Lisa Cook. Whether he wants to do that or not is entirely up to the president. However, we will go where mortgage fraud is. If mortgage fraud is with Republican or Democrat, it doesn’t matter—if you commit mortgage fraud in President Trump’s America, we’re going to come after you. And Lisa Cook is no exception to that.”

In the letter Trump released on Friday, he directly accused Cook of fraudulently completing mortgage applications and called on her to resign or be removed by him. “You made false statements of material fact to a lender, which is a crime,” Trump’s letter reads.

The White House sent a separate letter to Cook on Friday afternoon, claiming the president does have the authority to remove her from office if she does not resign. “The Board of Governors for the Federal Reserve System (Board), and its individual members, are appointed by the President,” the letter states. “As such, the president of the United States has the authority to remove a member of the Board ‘for cause.’ You were appointed by President Biden, but I intend that your term will end immediately upon your resignation, or upon your removal by me for cause, whichever comes first.”

The president also claimed that “reasonable cause” has been established to believe Cook “knowingly made a false statement or representation on one or more mortgage applications, in violation of Title 18, United States Code Section 1014.”

Cook, however, quickly dismissed Trump’s claims as illegitimate and vowed to continue in her post. “President Trump purported to fire me ‘for cause’ when no cause exists under the law, and he has no authority to do so. 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 said in a statement provided to Fox News Digital.

Cook is being represented by Abbe Lowell, a lawyer who has previously represented Hunter Biden, New York Attorney General Letitia James, and Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump, in matters relating to Trump and his associates. In a statement to Truth Social on Friday, Lowell vehemently opposed Trump’s attempt to remove Cook from office, reiterating that Cook is not resigning and that he “will take whatever actions are needed to prevent his attempted illegal action.”

FOX Business also reached out to the Federal Reserve for comment, but the bank did not immediately respond.

Lowell then announced that he was filing a lawsuit on Cook’s behalf, contesting the legality of Trump’s attempt to oust her. “President Trump has no authority to remove Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook. 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,” Lowell said.

Democrats slam Trump for ‘power grab’ as they rally around Cook

Cook has also received the support of Democrats who have begun to coalesce around her and stand against the president’s apparent power grab.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., have all released statements defending Cook.

The former Massachusetts senator was the first Democrat to slam Trump over the issue. “The White House is apparently engaged in an authoritarian power grab. Trump is desperately looking for a scapegoat to cover for his own failure to lower costs for Americans, and firing Lisa Cook is his latest move. Congress can’t allow this travesty to stand. Now is the time to pass Elizabeth Warren’s Federal Reserve Independence Act, to enshrine the Fed’s independence in law for good,” Warren said.