Georgia economist fired by Trump says she isn’t leaving the Fed board

President Donald Trump fired Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook on Monday. But the Georgia-born economist said she’s not going anywhere.

“I will not resign,” Cook said in a statement through her attorney. “I will continue to carry out my duties to help the American economy as I have been doing since 2022.”

Federal law says the president can dismiss a governor for cause — usually meaning misconduct in office. In this case, Trump accused the Milledgeville native of committing fraud while seeking mortgages on a condo in Atlanta and a home in Michigan by characterizing both as her primary residence.

“At a minimum, the conduct at issue exhibits the sort of gross negligence in financial transactions that calls into question your competence and trustworthiness as a financial regulator,” Trump wrote in a letter to Cook.

But Cook said “no cause exists under law” to remove her. Experts have questioned whether Trump’s firing would stand up in court because a “for cause” removal usually requires a proceeding to allow Cook to defend herself, which has not happened.

If successful, Trump’s firing attempt would give him a majority of allies on the Federal Reserve Board and position him to press for lower interest rates, fulfilling his mission to exert more direct control over the independent central bank. That’s something Fed Chair Jerome Powell, a Cook ally, has been reluctant to do.

There’s no telling what happens now. No president has ever sought to oust a sitting Fed governor, and the move could backfire by jolting investor confidence in the powerful body.

Cook, the first Black woman to serve on the seven-member board, is making clear she will fight back. Her attorney, Abbe David Lowell, said Trump’s “reflex to bully is flawed and his demands lack any proper process, basis or legal authority.”

He added: “We will take whatever actions are needed to prevent his attempted illegal action.”

Things to know

Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC

Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC

Good morning! Voters in parts of Fulton and Cherokee counties will go to the polls today to select a successor to former Republican state Sen. Brandon Beach. The AJC’s Michelle Baruchman offers a rundown of the race with a crowded field that could be headed to a runoff.

Here are four other things to know for today:

Snail mail

Credit: TNS

Credit: TNS

Could mail delivery problems be responsible for thousands of voter cancellations in Georgia?

Election officials canceled 471,000 voter registrations last week, including 102,000 because their election mail was undeliverable. Returned mail usually indicates that a voter has moved from Georgia.

But 5,500 voters saved their registrations from cancellation by confirming their addresses. A significant portion had been flagged for removal because of returned mail, according to a review of election records by the AJC’s Mark Niesse.

Problems with the U.S. Postal Service are well-documented in recent years, including slow delivery times associated with a move toward regional processing hubs. Disruptions from Hurricane Helene also played a role.

And before last year’s election, voters complained that their election mail had been returned to sender even though they hadn’t moved away.

About 35% of the 5,500 voters who salvaged their registrations were initially facing cancellation because of returned mail. That was a higher rate than the 23% who faced cancellation because they filled out a change-of-address form at some point in the past but retain Georgia residency.

The rest of the voters who confirmed their Georgia residency were those who obtained a driver’s license in another state (21%) or hadn’t voted in about 10 years (21%).

Funding fight

Luke Pilato and Ashley McCullough just wanted to enroll their daughter in an Atlanta public school. Instead, they’re now caught in the middle of a long-running feud between city of Atlanta and DeKalb County over public education funding.

The Atlanta City Council annexed the couple’s DeKalb County home in 2022. But a state law passed the year before prevented them from sending their child to an Atlanta public school. The couple and the city sued, and the Georgia Supreme Court will hear arguments about it today.

“This case is one of many attempts by (Atlanta) to cannibalize the public-school funding of its neighbor,” Andrew Coffman, DeKalb County’s attorney, wrote in a brief to the court that also described the dispute as “an ongoing legal war.”

Senate Bill 209 says that if Atlanta annexes a property in DeKalb County, it doesn’t automatically extend the boundaries of Atlanta Public Schools. The law aims to stop Atlanta’s annexation moves from cutting into the tax base of DeKalb County schools.

Atlanta argues the law is an unconstitutional restriction on its powers to annex. But Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr says local governments have no power unless the Legislature gives it to them.

“It does not have standing to sue over a power it does note have,” Carr’s office wrote in its brief.

Wooing sports

Former North Carolina state Rep. Jason Saine highlighted his state’s booming tax revenue on Monday during a visit to the Georgia Capitol to push the merits of sports betting. But it was another potential windfall that piqued the interest of some Peach State politicians.

Saine, a Republican, noted that 30% of the taxes North Carolina collects on legal sports wagers go to a “major events fund” used to help lure major sporting events by paying for things such as infrastructure and security improvements.

“We may have more money in that fund than we need, which is a good problem to have,” Saine said.

Georgia lawmakers have struggled to find a steady source of revenue to pay for the plethora of needs surrounding major sporting events.

Lawmakers spent nearly $25 million to help cover expenses related to the college football national championship game and the World Cup. But they balked at a $7 million request for spending around 2028 Super Bowl and the 2031 NCAA men’s basketball Final Four — both scheduled for Atlanta. Legislative leaders said it was too early to commit to spend the money.

“We’ve had real problems with the perpetual major event funding mechanism,” said state Rep. Ron Stephens, R-Savannah. “I’m very excited about that.”

Campaign watch

Credit: Courtesy photo

Credit: Courtesy photo

Retired combat veteran Brian Montgomery is joining the race for Georgia’s 1st Congressional District.

Montgomery is at least the ninth candidate in the race to replace U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter, the St. Simons Island Republican who is vacating the seat to run for the U.S. Senate next year.

A graduate of West Point, Montgomery introduced himself to voters with a 90-second video on Monday detailing why he joined the military. He noted his graduating class at West Point had the most casualties of any since the Vietnam War. That included his best friend.

The Republican field already includes Jim Kingston, son of former GOP U.S. Rep. Jack Kingston; U.S. Navy veteran Krista Penn, former state GOP 1st District Chair Kandiss Taylor and longtime Chatham County Commissioner Pat Farrell.

Democrats in the race include Marine Corps veteran Defonsio Daniels, activist Amanda Hollowell, business consultant Michael McCord and Joey Palimeno.

Listen up

Credit: Jeff Amy/AP

Credit: Jeff Amy/AP

Today on the “Politically Georgia” podcast we’re breaking down U.S. Rep. Mike Collins’ high-profile Senate campaign kickoff and what it signals about Republican divisions in Georgia. We also take a closer look at Vice President JD Vance’s visit to Peachtree City last week.

You can listen and subscribe to Politically Georgia for free at Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

Have a question or comment for the show? Email us at politicallygeorgia@ajc.com or give us a call at 770-810-5297 and you could be featured on a future episode.

Trump today

President Donald Trump will meet with his Cabinet.

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Before you go

Nearly 60 candidates qualified to run for office in Atlanta in November. The AJC’s Riley Bunch has them all listed here.

That’ll do it for us today. As always, you can send your best scoops, gossip and insider info to greg.bluestein@ajc.com, tia.mitchell@ajc.com, patricia.murphy@ajc.com and adam.beam@ajc.com.