President Donald Trump’s rapidly escalating war with the Federal Reserve is set to become one of the first high-profile clashes in Congress when lawmakers return from their August recess.
Trump’s move to fire Fed Reserve Gov. Lisa Cook late Monday is now looming large over a Senate Republican push to confirm Stephen Miran to a separate Fed seat. Miran’s nomination hearing in front of the Senate Banking Committee is expected next week, according to two people with knowledge of the matter who were granted anonymity to discuss unannounced plans.
The hearing, which was in the works prior to the president’s move against Cook and has not been officially announced, is poised to test the extent to which Republicans will back Trump’s aggressive Fed shake-up and give Democrats a new opening to press GOP lawmakers on their commitment to maintaining the central bank’s independence.
Key Republican lawmakers have long warned against any move to encroach on the Fed’s independence from the executive branch. The Cook firing, which is almost certain to spark a landmark legal fight, could complicate the path forward for Miran — and provide an avenue for any concerned Republicans to dissent from the president’s campaign against the central bank.
“Now it’s like a political stand and a referendum on Trump,” a GOP congressional aide who was granted anonymity to speak candidly said of the Miran nomination. “It takes it out of the control of the nominee.”
Miran, who currently chairs Trump’s Council of Economic Advisers, was nominated earlier this month to temporarily fill a Fed board vacancy created by the resignation of Gov. Adriana Kugler. If confirmed, he would hold the seat until Kugler’s term expires on Jan. 31, 2026. The administration is quietly lobbying Senate Republicans to confirm him in September, ideally in time for him to take part in the Federal Reserve’s mid-month meeting.
Many Democrats were already gearing up to oppose Miran’s nomination amid growing concern over the pressure tactics the Trump administration is using to get the Fed to cut interest rates. But Trump’s move Monday to fire Cook now makes Miran’s confirmation more politically charged for some Republican lawmakers who have vowed to protect the Fed’s independence.
Democrats are expected to focus heavily on the Fed’s independence during the Miran confirmation.
“Four Senate Republicans could preserve Fed independence if they refuse to move any Trump Fed nominee until he stops trying to illegally fire Cook,” said Aaron Klein, a former Democratic staffer on the Senate Banking Committee who is now a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. “Fed independence is something created by Congress. It’s now time to see whether Congress will stand up for Fed independence.”
Trump and other officials in his administration have accused Cook of mortgage fraud, which he said provides “sufficient cause” for him to oust her in a letter to the Joe Biden appointee that he posed on social media Monday. Cook is gearing up to fight the move in court. She said in a statement that “no cause exists under the law” and Trump “has no authority to” remove her.
A Fed spokesperson on Tuesday said that central bank governors may be removed only “for cause” as Congress established in the Federal Reserve Act.
“Long tenures and removal protections for governors serve as a vital safeguard, ensuring that monetary policy decisions are based on data, economic analysis, and the long-term interests of the American people,” the spokesperson said in a statement.
The attacks are part of a broader campaign by the Trump administration to gain more control over Fed decision-making. Trump has also aggressively gone after Fed Chair Jerome Powell over the central bank’s hesitance to cut interest rates and his handling of the renovations of its Washington headquarters.
“We’ll have a majority very shortly,” Trump said Tuesday afternoon. “So that’ll be great.”
In a twist, Trump also suggested Tuesday he could nominate Miran for Cook’s seat, which runs until 2038, instead of him filling the short-term vacancy created by Kugler’s departure. But several Hill Republicans noted that such a move could be risky given the looming legal fight over Cook’s ouster.
Most GOP senators have been silent on Trump’s move against Cook. But several Republicans — including Sens. Thom Tillis of North Carolina and John Kennedy of Louisiana, who both sit on Senate Banking — have previously defended the Fed’s independence as Trump flirted with the possibility of firing Powell. Republicans need total unity from the members on the committee in order to advance Miran’s nomination, or unlikely help from Democrats.
Republicans elsewhere on Capitol Hill are also signaling plans to ramp up scrutiny of Cook. A spokesperson for House Financial Services Chair French Hill (R-Ark.) said in a statement that “Congress has a constitutional responsibility to provide oversight, and the Committee looks forward to examining the allegations” against her. Hill has previously said he doesn’t believe Trump can fire Powell.
“The independence of the Fed is a cornerstone of sound economic governance,” the spokesperson, Dan Schneider, said. “The allegations against Governor Cook are serious and the appearance of something unethical erodes trust in the Federal Reserve.”
Meredith Lee Hill contributed to this report.
