(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump’s attempted removal of Lisa Cook from the Federal Reserve Board of Governors – an unprecedented assertion of executive power – sets the stage for a consequential legal battle likely bound for the U.S. Supreme Court.

In creating the nation’s central bank, Congress explicitly sought to insulate the Fed from political interference by mandating 14-year terms for board members appointed by a president and confirmed by the Senate.

Federal law says members can only be fired “for cause,” which has been interpreted to mean inefficiency, neglect, or malfeasance while in office.

No president has ever tried to terminate a member of the Federal Reserve for cause, and no court has ever been asked to weigh in on such an action.

The administration accuses Cook, wh

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