US Department of Justice: Firing Federal Reserve Board Director Cook will not lead to "financial market disaster"

The U.S. Department of Justice stated in a filing submitted to the Supreme Court on Friday that President Trump's dismissal of Federal Reserve Board Director Cook would not lead to a "financial market disaster," and urged the Supreme Court to allow Trump to dismiss Cook during the lawsuit. Deputy Chief of the U.S. Department of Justice, D. John Sauer, pointed out in the filing that Trump had suffered "irreparable harm" due to a lower court's request to temporarily reinstate Cook. Sauer argued that recognizing the President's right to dismiss a director due to "clear financial impropriety" would not harm the Fed's policy independence or cause market panic. He stated, "There is no reason to believe that dismissing a director for improper conduct before taking office is more likely to cause market panic than dismissing a director for misconduct while in office." Trump announced Cook's dismissal at the end of August, citing allegations of mortgage fraud brought by the head of the U.S. Housing Finance Agency, Bill Pulte, claiming that Cook had declared two properties as "primary residences" in loan documents before being appointed as a Federal Reserve director. Cook denied this accusation. Cook's legal team filed a document with the Supreme Court on Thursday, rebutting Trump's request. They stated that Trump's "emergency application" is essentially asking the Supreme Court to "quickly make a decision that would destroy the independence of the Federal Reserve Board." Cook's side believes that Trump's accusations are "fabricated" and that the actions took place before his appointment, failing to meet the requirements of the "for cause removal" in the Federal Reserve Act of 1913. Cook's team warned that if the Supreme Court approves Trump's request, the financial markets would perceive the loss of the Fed's traditional independence, leading to chaos and turmoil.