Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook will be attending the 2025 Jackson Hole Economic Symposium on the Fed Bank of Kansas City, “Labor Markets in Transition: Demographics, Productivity and Macroeconomic Policy.”
Jim Urquhart | Reuters
The two Republican senators said Wednesday they would not consider the possibility of replacing Federal Reserve Lisa Cook until a lawsuit challenging President Donald Trump’s firing of her is resolved.
“She’s still in that position. She doesn’t have the right process yet,” Sen. Mike Round told CNBC.
Round, a member of the Senate’s Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, refused to say whether he would support the committee’s Cook replacement.
“At this point, it’s hypothetical because I can’t make a decision about what will happen before the committee,” he said.
“She is still a member of the board and knows that the president most certainly has the right to influence and lobby, but at this stage of the game, her status remains unchanged.”
“No one will be considering it until it is ruled,” said Sen. Tom Tillis, a member of the North Carolina Republican Banking Committee.
Sen. Tom Tillis, RN.C. questions Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell at the Darksen Building on Wednesday, June 25th, 2025, in the audience of the Senate Bank, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee entitled “Semi-annual Monetary Policy Report to Congress.”
Tom Williams | CQ-Roll Call, Inc. |Getty Images
“I’ll leave it to the court to decide whether it’s legal,” Tillis told Politico.
“But if in fact it is for a cause, even if these events are as explained, it is doubtful whether (they) are the basis for a cause,” he continued.
“If creating a truly partisan disparity for the Fed is a real move, I’m against it.”
As members of the Senate Banking Committee, Tillis and Round have a significant shaking over Trump’s Federal Reserve pick. Republicans have a narrow majority on the committee, and unanimous support will be needed to advance the president’s final choice for the role of the central bank.
In an unprecedented move last week, Trump said he was firing Cook, appointed by former President Joe Biden over allegations of mortgage fraud.
Cook immediately sues Trump’s bid to remove her, setting up a legal battle that could ultimately be decided by the Supreme Court.
The court hearing on the issue ended last week without resolution, unclearing the future of Cook’s position.
