Two for One: Lisa Cook & the Fed

Trump has long sought to control the Fed. He tried and failed to fire its Chair, Jerome Powell. He has now set his sights on Lisa Cook, a Black woman

Happy Labor Day!

It’s Virgo season…. my season… Happy birthday Angela, Almaz, and my beautiful and smart niece, Rina. 💕

One of the most amazing things about this newsletter is the amazing women I have met through it. One of those women is Almaz, who helped formulate and shape today’s column. I’m excited for her to finish her book about women and the economy, which will help shed light on why getting to equality is so hard.

Love this post by hitting 🖤 above —and, please, share with others. If you ❤️ the newsletter, please become a paid subscriber.

This week, Donald Trump announced he had “fired” Lisa Cook, a member of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors. The trouble with that is he can’t. The Federal Reserve is an independent body, which drives Trump crazy. He wants the Fed to take his direction, especially on interest rates. He wants them low, so that borrowing is easier. That’s something Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, has done—with disastrous results. Inflation there soared above 70 percent earlier this year.

Trump’s first target was Jerome Powell, the Fed Chair. He started criticizing Powell in 2018, shortly after appointing him to the post. Since Trump took office in January, he has harangued the Fed Chair for not cutting interest rates. He tried to fire Powell—and replace him with a Trump loyalist. Nothing happened. Powell is a white man—and we all know that makes him harder to tear down. Lisa Cook is a Black woman, which is what made her the ideal target. Trump has accused her of falsifying statements on mortgage applications. He said, straightfaced, "she seems to have had an infraction, and she can't have an infraction." He added that "we need people that are 100% above board." Yes, I pounded my head on the desk as well. 🙇🏻‍♀️

But it’s not what Cook did but her race and gender that caught Trump’s eye. It distracts us from the question about the Fed’s independence. It turns the issue into a spectacle, which Trump, ever the showman, loves. And in doing so, he chips away at the credibility of one of the last independent institutions of government. It’s a “two for one.”

As we’ve seen, Trump insists on ruling without guardrails. He is succeeding in bending the system to his will. He has staked his administration with yes men and a few Botoxed up women. He has struck fear in the GOP so that the Republican controlled Congress won’t dare challenge him. The Supreme Court is aligned with him. DOGE has destroyed education and much of the national security apparatus. The Federal Reserve is one of the last pillars that Trump does not “own.”

It’s actually surprising that Trump took so long to go after Cook. His pattern has been to zero in on the women. Midweek Susan Monarez, the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, replaced Cook in the headlines as Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert Kennedy, sought to fire her. In early May, Trump fired Carla Hayden, the Librarian of Congress, who was just 18 months short of fulfilling her 10-year term. Admirals Lisa Franchetti and Linda Fagan, serving the Navy and Coast Guard, respectively, were among the first heads to roll at the Department of Defense back in February.

Trump knows these women are vulnerable—because women are not an integral part of any system. As I’ve repeatedly said, so apologies for harping on this point, they’re an afterthought, often elevated to leadership posts but not given any real authority. Instead, they are held to an impossible standard, left to navigate a system designed to keep them on the proverbial ropes. I wrote about that when MAGA Republicans, namely Elise Stefanik, went after the college presidents at Harvard, MIT, and Columbia—all women.

Now, it is Lisa Cook’s turn. She is the first Black woman to serve on the Fed’s Board of Governors. A daughter of the segregated South, her academic work on systemic inequality made her a lightning rod even before this week. I spoke to Cook in 2020, in the aftermath of George Floyd’s murder. She talked about the importance of having Black economists—not just for representation, but for the questions they ask and the perspectives they bring—so that we can all have prosperity. That commitment has made her both invaluable and vulnerable. (Give it a listen, cause it will save me from going down a separate rabbit hole on the topic).

As we head into the Labor Day weekend, we’re faced with two questions. First, will Americans tolerate the erosion of one more institution? 👀 And, second, whether they will accept that the person in the crosshairs happens to be a Black woman. Because in this situation, Lisa Cook’s identity—her diversity—works to Trump’s advantage: it turns an assault on the Fed into another culture war.

The danger is that we’ll miss the bigger picture. Trump isn’t just trying to erase Lisa Cook. He’s trying to erase the idea that any part of government should be beyond his reach.—Elmira

---

Elsewhere in the World.....

On our radar...

Lisa Cook

Listen: Who is Lisa Cook and what are the challenges facing women of color in economics? Anna Gifty Opoku-Agyeman talked to Robin Young. (WBUR)

And here is my podcast with Lisa again, because why not… (Opinion Has It) I miss podcasting… maybe I’ll go back to it. 🤔

Gaza

Another dark week in Gaza this week. Israel targeted a hospital in Gaza, killing 22, including 5 journalists. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists 197 journalists have been killed in Gaza. All of them Palestinian, as Israel has prevented international journalists from entering Gaza. Stephanie Sy talked to Azmat Khan about the targeting of journalists in Gaza. (PBS News Hour)

Meanwhile, in the West Bank, Jessica Buxbaum on how Israel is funding settler violence to overrun Palestinian villages. (New Lines)

A number of countries have recognized Palestine as a state. What does that mean? Mariel Ferragamo and Diana Roy point out that full independence and UN membership remain elusive. (CFR)

US

On Monday, Trump welcomed South Korea’s leader Lee Jae Myung—and had everyone on edge. Before the Korean leader arrived at the Oval Office, Trump posted about a “Purge or Revolution” in the country. (His use of capitalization drives me nuts). Much to the relief of the South Koreans, there was no Zelensky moment. Catherine Kim on how Lee ingratiated Trump, even suggesting a Trump Tower in North Korea. (Another thing that drives me crazy). (Politico)

Also, those pressers where Trump just goes on and on…. 🙄

Listen: The FBI raided former National Security Advisor John Bolton’s home and office. Why? Mary McCord, Zachary Myers, and David Aaron unpack what’s happening and why. (Just Security)

Africa

You may have heard about Kilmar Ábrego García, the Salvadoran man caught up in Trump’s immigration crackdown. The latest is that the administration wants to send him to Uganda. How is that possible? Well, as Rachel Savage outlines, the US and Uganda brokered an agreement for Uganda to receive third party nationals in the country. (Guardian)

Asia

Those 50 percent tariffs on Indian goods to the US went into effect this week. Coincidentally, India’s leader, Narendra Modi, travels to China this weekend—his first trip since 2018. (Yeah, okay there was a pandemic in between, but still….) China is hosting the Shanghai Corporation Organization, a counter to Western-led alliances. Should the US be worried? Maybe, says Rhea Mogul. (CNN)

Middle East

The UK, France and Germany have initiated “snapback” sanctions on Iran. Farnoush Amiri, Stephanie Liechtenstein, and Jon Gambrell explain that this means Iranian assets abroad would be frozen. It would, as they write, “further isolate Tehran following the bombing of its atomic sites and squeeze the country’s economy, which is already reeling.” (AP)

Europe

Mon Dieu, I know that’s a lame joke. I’m lame, what can I say? There’s trouble in France…The country is on the verge of a debt crisis. The French prime minister, who is NOT Emmanuel Macrons, has called a vote of confidence on Sept 8. Léa Prati and Romain Imbach explain how France got here. (Le Monde)

Amanda Coakley brings up a point that had been on my mind. Last week, when Zelensky called on Trump at the White House, leaders from France, Italy, Germany, Finland and the heads of NATO and the European Commission joined. Where were the leaders of Poland and Hungary, which are geographically closer to Ukraine? Coakley notes that the absence of leaders from Eastern Europe “risks a shallow settlement to the war in Ukraine.” (World Politics Review)

On Trump’s summit with Putin earlier this month, Jennifer Kavanagh says that it revealed how little leverage the US has and how Zelensky is essentially “painted into a corner.” (Responsible Statecraft)

As Trump turns away from Europe and NATO, Germany has stepped up its defense posture. The former German Chancellor Olaf Scholz had announced this “Zeitenwene,” turning point on the country’s security policy in 2022. Marion Messmer on how it’s going—and how much further it needs to go. (Chatham House)

Under the Radar

What’s the future of peacekeeping? Kim Heart and Rachel George argue that it comes down to women. “Double down on women’s inclusion in all aspects of peace operations,” they write. Amen. (PassBlue)

---

Opportunities

Carnegie Corporation of New York has a really terrific opportunity as Vice President, National Programs

---

Editorial Team

Elmira Bayrasli - Editor-in-Chief