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Letter from Daniel Scavino to Governor Lisa D. Cook
The White House · 2026-08-05
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# THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
August 5, 2026
Dr. Lisa D. Cook
Member
Board of Governors
United States Federal Reserve System
20th Street & Constitution Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20551
c/o Abbe Lowell
Dear Governor Cook:
Pursuant to the Supreme Court's opinion from June 29, 2026, you are hereby provided notice that the President is considering removing you from your position on the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve due to there being sufficient reason to believe that you made false statements on one or more mortgage agreements. Please provide a written response with your explanation for your false statements and accompanying evidence within 21 days.
On August 15, 2025, Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency William J. Pulte submitted a criminal referral to the Department of Justice ("Criminal Referral"). This Criminal Referral is attached to this letter as Exhibit 1.
The President has reviewed the allegations in the Criminal Referral, and believes there is reason to believe you may have made false statements on one or more mortgage agreements. As detailed in the Criminal Referral, you signed one document attesting that a property in Michigan would be your primary residence for the next year. Specifically, on June 18, 2021, you acquired a loan on the property at 2105 Jackson Avenue, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48103 and entered into a fifteen-year mortgage agreement with the University of Michigan Credit Union for $203,000, plus interest. See Exhibit 1-A. In your mortgage agreement entered into with the University of Michigan Credit Union, you represented to "use the Property as Borrower's principal residence within 60 days after the execution of this Security Instrument and shall continue to occupy the Property as Borrower's principal residence for at least one year after the date of occupancy." Id.
Just two weeks later, you signed another document for a property in Georgia stating that it would be your primary residence for that same year. You also purchased a condominium in Atlanta's "Above the Four Seasons" building—75 14th Street NE Unit 3550, Atlanta, Georgia 30309—and entered into a thirty-year mortgage agreement with the Bank Fund Staff Federal Credit Union for $540,000, while making the same representation that the property would serve as your primary
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residence within sixty days of the execution of the mortgage and would serve as your primary residence for a full year. *See* Exhibit 1-B. The President believes it is inconceivable that you were not aware of your first commitment when making the second and impossible that you intended to honor both.
Further, the Atlanta address was then listed for rent in September 2022, *see* Exhibit 1-C, even though rental properties typically require the owner to enter into an investment/rental property mortgage as opposed to a primary residence mortgage, and despite the fact that you never disclosed rental income in your financial disclosures for calendar years 2022 and 2023.
Taken together, these acts may be sufficient to demonstrate that you committed a crime, as you appear to have acquired mortgages that do not meet certain lending requirements and could have received favorable loan terms under fraudulent circumstances. You signed two mortgages within two weeks of each other, claiming that both would be your principal place of residence within 60 days. Doing so benefited you by decreasing your interest rates, as interest rates on secondary residence mortgages are typically between 0.25-0.50% higher than their primary residence counterparts, and investment property mortgages are even higher. Based on these facts, a jury could find that you intended to defraud these institutions for your own benefit, but at a minimum, this conduct was grossly negligent and demonstrates that you are unfit for the office in which you serve as a controlling member of the Federal Reserve.
The Federal Reserve has a unique historic status and role in setting interest rates and regulating reserve and member banks. It also has a unique status as an independent entity in the federal government, insulated from direct accountability to the American people. In light of this *sui generis* mission and structure in our constitutional order, it is all the more essential that the men and women entrusted with this awesome responsibility be above reproach, particularly in financial matters.
The allegations set forth in the Criminal Referral fall well short of the standard required of one serving as a Governor of the Federal Reserve. Standing alone they are serious. Indeed, the Criminal Referral alleges that you have committed bank fraud, a felony offense punishable by up to 30-years in federal prison. *See* 18 U.S.C. §§ 1014, 1344. Even if your conduct does not rise to the level of a felony offense, it appears to demonstrate a level of gross negligence in financial transactions that calls into question your competence and trustworthiness as a financial regulator.
There is a distinct nexus between a basic level of trustworthiness and care in financial matters and the duties of a Member of the Board of Governors. Because the allegations in the Criminal Referral reflect on your honesty, trustworthiness, and competence to perform the duties of the office you currently hold, the President has
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determined that there is reason to believe they constitute cause to remove you from your position on the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve. See 12 U.S.C. § 242.
You have known since at least August 25, 2025, about these allegations. Yet, even though it has been over 10 months, you have never provided an explanation for this serious misconduct, despite having ample opportunity to do so. Nevertheless, the Supreme Court recently determined that you are entitled to notice of the allegations against you and an opportunity to respond prior to your removal. The Criminal Referral and this letter set forth the allegations. This is your opportunity to respond. You may provide any evidence or other supporting documentation you wish to be considered, and you may provide any argument that you wish to be considered to the President through the Director of Presidential Personnel no later than August 26, 2026. Note, this is a matter within the jurisdiction of the executive branch. Therefore, the submission of any materially false or fraudulent information may subject you to criminal liability under 18 U.S.C. § 1001.
Please direct your response to David Warrington at
David.A.Warrington@who.eop.gov
Thank you for your attention to this matter.
Daniel Scavino
Assistant to the President and Deputy Chief of Staff and Director of the Office of Presidential Personnel