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President Donald Trump has moved to remove Fed Governor Lisa Cook from office, claiming that she “made false statements on one or more mortgage agreements” and should be dismissed “effective immediately.” In response, Cook is refusing to step down, setting up a likely constitutional showdown over the president’s powers.

The president posted the letter to Truth Social on Tuesday. It was the second time in as many weeks that Trump had demanded Cook’s resignation. In the letter, the president wrote that it was his power “under the Constitution of the United States and the Federal Reserve Act of 1913 to remove’ Fed governors from the Board of Governors ‘for cause.” He went on, “I have determined that faithfully enacting the law requires your immediate removal from office.”

The case against Cook is drawn from a criminal referral from Bill Pulte, a Trump appointee to an agency that regulates Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Pulte, a real estate developer, accused Cook in that referral of falsely claiming two “primary residences” — one in Ann Arbor, Mich., and another in Atlanta — in 2021 to secure more advantageous mortgage rates. In an interview on Fox Business’ “Mornings with Maria” program, Pulte placed the allegations in more dramatic terms.

“It’s very odd to see people try to twist back way sideways and upside down to justify mortgage fraud,” Pulte said. “This is a very serious crime. Mortgage fraud carries up to 30 years in prison. I believe the president has ample cause to fire Lisa Cook. Whether he wants to do that or not is entirely up to the president. However, we will go where mortgage fraud is. If mortgage fraud is with a Republican or a Democrat, it doesn’t matter—if you commit mortgage fraud in President Trump’s America, we’re going to come after you. And Lisa Cook is no exception to that.”

On Aug. 15, Pulte filed a criminal referral with the Department of Justice alleging that Cook “made a false statement on bank documents and real property records.” A DOJ spokesperson did not immediately return a request for comment, but to date, no charges have been brought in the case.

Cook, a Biden appointee who joined the Federal Reserve Board in 2022, quickly shot back at Trump. “President Trump purported to fire me ‘for cause’ when no cause exists under the law, and he has no authority to do so. I will not resign. I will continue to carry out my duties to help the American economy as I have been doing since 2022,” Cook said in a statement given to Fox News Digital.

Cook is being represented by Abbe Lowell, a high-profile attorney who has previously represented Hunter Biden, New York Attorney General Letitia James, Jared Kushner, and Ivanka Trump. In a response to Trump’s letter, Lowell was equally critical of the president. “President Trump has taken to social media to once again ‘fire by tweet,’ and once again his reflex to bully is flawed and his demands lack any proper process, basis, or legal authority. We will take whatever actions are needed to prevent his attempted illegal action,” he said.

FOX Business attempted to reach out to the Federal Reserve for a response, but did not immediately hear back.

Lowell later released a statement on Cook’s behalf, saying he would file a lawsuit to “formally challenge President Trump’s attempted illegal action.” “President Trump has no authority to remove Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook. His attempt to fire her, based solely on a referral letter, lacks any factual or legal basis. We will be filing a lawsuit challenging this illegal action,” Lowell said.