Market analysis: Trump's dismissal of Federal Reserve Governor Cook lacks legal basis

Market analysts pointed out that Trump's firing letter cited a criminal referral from the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, accusing Cook, the Fed governor, of making false statements in one or more mortgage applications. Trump therefore claimed that he could remove Cook under the "just cause" clause in the relevant statute. But a criminal referral is not a criminal charge, much less an indictment or an arrest warrant. It represents suspicion, not "reasonable cause" or even an investigation. A criminal referral is not essentially a legal document. It simply means that certain actions may be worth investigating. That is why a criminal referral can be easily politicized, and its existence in no way constitutes a valid basis for a "just cause" dismissal. That is why Cook will prevail.