One of President Donald Trump's emerging outspoken officials, Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte, announced a Thursday 10 a.m. ET news conference "In the Matter of Lisa D. Cook."
Pulte posted Wednesday morning on X, without further detail:
Federal Housing Press Conference
Subject: In the Matter of Lisa D. Cook
Time: 10am EDT
Date: Thursday, September 4
Location: Elijah Barrett Prettyman US Courthouse, DC.
The announcement comes just a day after Pulte made a number of explosive statements and allegations against Cook's alleged mortgage fraud investigation his agency is conducting.
Pulte revealed "major news" Tuesday, alleging to show "proof" that Cook, suspected of mortgage fraud, is using her homes for rental income.
"NEW: VIDEO PROOF We have just received video proof that Lisa Cook's declared 'PRIMARY RESIDENCE' is being RENTED out to tenants," Pulte posted to X. "Cook RECENTLY CLAIMED to the U.S. Government that it was her PERSONAL RESIDENCE, but she's renting it out? Good journalism, @Charlieleduff"
Cook is attempting to argue through her lawyer Abbe Lowell, who defended Hunter Biden and opened a firm to obstruct Trump actions with lawsuits, that "contradictions" of claims on mortgage applications — seemingly acknowledging some of the details of the allegations against her — do not constitute "for cause" firing by Trump.
In a filing in U.S. District Court, Cook said she listed mortgages on three properties on forms submitted to the White House and U.S. Senate in the vetting process for her appointment to the Fed in 2022. Any inconsistencies were known when she was confirmed and cannot give Trump grounds to fire her now, she said.
In the filing, Cook said that on a background check form, she listed a property in Michigan as a primary residence and one in Georgia as a "2nd home." On a separate questionnaire, she listed both homes as her "present residence," the Michigan property as her "current permanent residence," and a third property in Massachusetts as both a present residence and a second home and rental property, she said.
"If those are facial contradictions, as the government and president claim … Senators or White House advisors could have inquired of her about any alleged 'facial inconsistencies,'" Lowell wrote in the filing.
The White House and the Department of Justice did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment.
Pulte also pointed Tuesday to the deafening silence from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, who is under fire by Trump for myriad reasons, including being "too late" on reducing interest rates, overspending for Federal Reserve building renovations, and potentially politicizing the Fed.
"Jerome Powell, he's got to answer for why he's not coming out and saying why this is bad," Pulte told reporters Tuesday outside the White House in a C-SPAN clip shared on X.
"He's destroying the credibility of the Fed by not saying that mortgage fraud is bad."
He added, "We have great career people. We have great people at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. We have great people at the Federal Housing Agency. Why would somebody who's Jerome Powell not come out and say, 'You know what, if Miss Cook did this, she should resign.'"
"If you're going to be in charge of the Federal Reserve, damn you better sure know how to fill out a mortgage application," Pulte told reporters.
But Powell's silence could potentially be used in another "for cause" firing by Trump, who has long resisted suggestions he would outright fire Powell before his chair term expired next year.
"It's becoming more and more concerning by the day, and I say that because not only from a legal perspective with mortgages, but obviously, the mortgage market is very dependent on the credibility of the Fed," Pulte added.
"And so, it's concerning."
Pulte's comments came in answering a question about whether Cook was still on the Fed payroll, and he admitted he did not know.
Earlier Tuesday, Pulte posted on X, questioning Cook's compliance with being fired by Trump.
"Is it legal for Jerome Powell to defy a Presidential Order by keeping Lisa Cook on his Website as a Governor?" Pulte asked, sharing a screenshot of the existing Federal Reserve Board website.
Eric Mack ✉
Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.
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