Trump Memo Creates White House Committee to Hear Removal Case Against Fed Governor Lisa Cook

A presidential memorandum dated October 7, 2026 (the date printed on the White House page; the press reported the announcement the Friday after) says “I hereby establish a committee of inquiry” to examine allegations that Fed Governor Lisa Cook made false statements on mortgage paperwork, and to report whether there is “cause” to remove her under the Federal Reserve Act. The memo names its members by office only: “The Assistant to the President for Economic Policy, the Chairman of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and the Director of the Office of Government Ethics shall serve as members of the Committee.” Reporting identifies them as Kevin Kevin Hassett, Andrea Lucas and Keith Sonderling; AP’s copy spells the EEOC chair “Rich,” which is wrong on its face.

The hearing is set for November 5, 2026, closed but transcribed, at the White House and capped at 4 hours; Cook’s post-hearing statement is due November 10, 2026. Background on the Supreme Court case the memo invokes, Trump v. Cook: 2026-06-29–scotus-overturns-humphreys-executor-presidential-firing-power and the earlier 2025-08-25–trump-attempts-to-fire-fed-governor-lisa-cook, 2025-09-04–doj-criminal-investigation-lisa-cook-mortgage-fraud and 2026-01-21–scotus-oral-argument-trump-v-cook.

Cook’s lawyers (Abbe Lowell, Norm Eisen) call the panel “demonstrably biased,” and the letter noted Hassett “has already said the president has "cause" to fire Cook.” The ticket’s framing that the lawyers say the panel is made up of Trump appointees is slightly off: that sentence is AP’s own, that the other members “are also Trump appointees.” The letter’s attack is on Hassett’s prior statement and the process, and it says Cook cannot attend on Nov. 5, with Dec. 8-9 the Fed meeting after which she could appear. AP reports no criminal charges have been filed.

Sourcing note: the core pull is the memo’s own text and AP via PBS, both fetched directly. Open items: Federal Register publication, any postponement of the hearing, and the Supreme Court opinion text.