Today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), the top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, released this statement following President Donald Trump’s late-night attempt to fire Federal Reserve Board Governor, Dr. Lisa Cook.

“This is what authoritarianism looks like. Donald Trump’s attempt to fire Dr. Lisa Cook is a flagrant, dangerous assault on the independence of the Federal Reserve (Fed) and part of the ongoing effort to force the central bank into slashing interest rates and doing whatever else he wants. Let me be crystal clear: removing Dr. Cook from the Board without legitimate cause is unconstitutional, and I am confident it will not stand in court.

With one Fed Governor having recently stepped down, Trump’s vision is to replace Dr. Cook in order to secure a majority on the Board of Governors and more quickly gain full control over monetary policy. A Trump-run Fed would be making monetary policy decisions for his personal and political gain instead of the public good – similar to what happens in authoritarian regimes like Russia and Venezuela.

Make no mistake, Committee Democrats will fight this illegal attempt to fire Dr. Lisa Cook with everything we have. We will not allow Trump or any of his allies to hijack our institutions for their authoritarian ends.”

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