WASHINGTON, United States (AFP)—The US Supreme Court hears arguments on Wednesday over President Donald Trump’s attempt to fire a Federal Reserve governor, a case which could have far-reaching consequences for the independence of the central bank.

Trump sought in August to dismiss Fed governor Lisa Cook, a key official serving on the Fed’s interest rate-setting committee, accusing her of mortgage fraud. She denies the charges.

The conservative-dominated Supreme Court barred Trump from immediately removing Cook, allowing her to remain in her post until it could hear the case contesting her dismissal.

In a sign of the significance of the case and public support for Cook, Fed Chair Jerome Powell plans to personally attend Wednesday’s Supreme Court hearing, a source familiar with the matter told AFP.

Powell’s expected appearance comes as the Trump administration intensifies its pressure campaign targeting the central bank, including the opening of a criminal investigation into the Fed chief.

Earlier this month, Powell revealed that US prosecutors had launched an inquiry into him over an ongoing renovation of the Fed’s headquarters.

Powell has dismissed the investigation as a politically motivated attempt to influence the central bank’s interest rate setting, and the heads of major central banks have thrown their support behind him.

Trump’s bid to fire Cook, the first Black woman to serve on the central bank’s board of governors, and the probe into Powell are a dramatic escalation of the president’s efforts to control the Fed.

Trump has repeatedly criticized the Fed for spurning his demands to slash interest rates more aggressively.

By ousting Cook, the Republican president could potentially add another voice to the Fed’s board to try and shift interest rates in his favored direction.

The case’s outcome could also determine if legal protections for the Fed — against political pressure — hold up, or if the president can take aim at members of the Fed’s leadership.

Former Fed chiefs have recently warned that undermining central bank independence risks “highly negative consequences for inflation” and the functioning of economies.

– ‘No cause exists’ –

The Supreme Court has overwhelmingly sided with Trump since he returned to office, allowing mass firing of federal workers, the withholding of funds appropriated by Congress and racial profiling in his sweeping immigration crackdown.

The court recently allowed Trump to fire members of other independent government boards, but created a carveout for the Fed in its ruling.

Federal law says that Fed officials can only be removed for “cause,” which could be interpreted to mean malfeasance or dereliction of duty.

“President Trump purported to fire me ‘for cause’ when no cause exists under the law, and he has no authority to do so,” Cook previously said in a statement.

In his announcement that Cook would be removed, Trump pointed to a criminal referral from the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s director — a staunch ally of Trump — to the attorney general.

The referral, Trump said, provided “sufficient reason” to believe that Cook might have made “false statements” on one or more mortgage agreements, allegedly claiming two primary residences, one in Michigan and another in Georgia.

Cook has not been charged with a crime and the alleged false statements occurred before she was in her current position.

Cook took office as a Fed governor in 2022 and was reappointed to the board in 2023.