Trump attack on Fed’s Lisa Cook cost her more than $1 million

Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook incurred more than $1.3 million in legal and security expenses following President Donald Trump’s attempt to fire her in August from the Fed’s board, a new ethics filing revealed Thursday.

The filing showed those expenses were paid by other individuals and organizations.

The Supreme Court is expected to rule within the next several weeks whether Trump has the power to fire Cook for the reasons he cited.

Trump tried to remove Cook from the Fed’s board while alleging that she had committed mortgage fraud, based on claims made by Bill Pulte, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

Cook denies she did anything wrong and sued to block her firing. She has remained on the board pending the outcome of that lawsuit.

“A Supreme Court case is not cheap,” a person familiar with Cook’s situation said about her legal expenditures, speaking anonymously to describe sensitive financial matters.

Cook’s address was publicized in the aftermath of the administration’s accusations against her.

“Being relentlessly and publicly attacked by the president and Pulte required certain measures to be taken for her protection,” the person said.

The Federal Reserve and an attorney for Cook each declined to comment.

Cook’s annual financial disclosure for 2025 filed with the Office of Government Ethics lists nearly $1.2 million in “payment for legal services” from the Democracy Defenders Fund and Contina Impact, two nonprofit organizations.

Contina Impact also provided approximately $144,000 in funds for security services. Cook’s form also mentions other smaller pro bono contributions to her legal and security expenses.

Cook’s attorney, Norm Eisen, is a co-founder of Democracy Defenders Fund.

“Democracy Defenders Fund is proud to be part of the legal defense team on this case as part of our fight to defend the rule of law,” Eisen said.

Contina Impact’s website describes it as providing fiscal sponsorship, a service that enables other entities that don’t have legal nonprofit status to take tax-deductible donations. Contina Impact did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment that was sent through an accounting contact listed on its website.

Pulte is set to become the acting director of the Office of National Intelligence on Friday.

Cook is on leave from Michigan State University while she serves at the Fed.

Her disclosure indicates she received rental income from a home in Ann Arbor, Mich., and another in Cambridge, Mass., that she describes as an investment property.

Federal ethics regulations permit outside payments in cases like Cook’s, where expenses were incurred in the course of their jobs.