In yet another major power grab by fascist Trump, on Monday, August 25, he announced his intention to fire Lisa Cook, one of the seven members of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve ("the Fed").

The Federal Reserve is the central bank of the U.S. It oversees and regulates the entire U.S. banking system and, along with the International Monetary Fund and World Bank, is a key instrument of U.S. imperialist domination in the world economy. Historically, all sections of the rulers have agreed that it should be “insulated” from policy conflicts within the capitalist-imperialist class.

The imperialist domination served by the Federal Reserve (see box) has meant needless suffering—to the “tune” of over 500 million unnecessary deaths of children under five since World War 2 through preventable disease and malnutrition. (See Bob Avakian’s social media message REVOLUTION #86, “This system of perpetual atrocity—killing hundreds of millions of children.”)

From Ruling Class Consensus to Fascist Power Grab

Traditionally, the Fed has been seen as extending and protecting the interests of the system as a whole and steps have been taken to insulate it from the traditional Republican-Democratic rivalry. Like Mafia bosses making a deal, the different factions agreed to restrain themselves for the larger good of the system. And indeed, when the fascist-dominated Supreme Court recently granted Trump wide latitude in firing people in total disregard for the law, even they made an exception for firing someone on the Federal Reserve.

For months, Trump had been publicly attacking and threatening to fire the Board's chairman, Jerome Powell, for refusing to follow his command to lower interest rates immediately in the wake of the economic turmoil caused by his punishing new tariffs affecting over 90 countries.¹

Now, by firing Lisa Cook, Trump is moving to seize full control over the Fed.

Lisa Cook, appointed to the Board of Governors in 2022, is the Fed's first Black female board member. From 2000 to 2001, she served as a senior adviser in the U.S. Department of Treasury's Office of International Affairs, and from 2011 to 2012, Cook served as a senior economist on the Council of Economic Advisers under President Obama. Much of her academic research has focused on racial and gender oppression and inequality (see accompanying article).

Trump claimed he could fire her because someone else in his circle had accused her of mortgage fraud. In fact, Lisa Cook has not even been charged, let alone convicted, of any crime. No evidence has yet been presented, the alleged events took place before she joined the Board, and she was given no time to see or respond to Trump's allegations. Cook refused to step down, and on Thursday, sued Trump, calling her firing “unprecedented and illegal.”

For over 100 years, the Federal Reserve has, by law, been independent of presidents and any attempts to manipulate its functions to serve their political aims. But every new Board member is chosen by the current president, with congressional approval. Replacing Cook with another dedicated Trump political loyalist will give him a fascist majority on the Board, putting directly in his hands full control over the country's entire banking system, the most powerful lever over U.S. monetary policy. 

Three Factors Leading Into Lisa Cook’s Firing

Three things are at play here:

1. The fascists MUST twist every significant institution into direct tools of their rule, in coordination with their need to remake all of society;
2. Trump has no respect for the rule of law whatsoever and, in his mind, an accusation by one of his fascist minions is the equivalent of a trial and verdict conducted by a neutral court;
3. And this is important, Trump himself is a diehard racist and the MAGA movement has a tremendous hatred of any prominent or accomplished Black people who do not lick the boots of Trump.

There is a need to oppose this illegal and racist move in its own right. But there is also importance to the possible conflict within the ruling class over Trump’s attempt to subordinate the Federal Reserve to his personal control and the political aims of this fascist regime.

Stepping outside of the situation with the Federal Reserve, these are the kinds of conflicts that will continue to intensify. 

The more that Trump MAGA fascism moves forward to radically reshape long-standing imperialist institutions, the more there could be forces among the rulers who could see this fascism as an existential threat to their system and its overall standing in the world. By itself, this would not go where it's needed. However, a massive nonviolent struggle of millions from below could both compel, and give cover to, forces within the ruling class to act to remove this regime. This is one way that the regime could be forced from office.

This massive nonviolent struggle of millions must amass in Washington, DC on November 5—the one year anniversary of Trump's election. And not stop until the regime is driven from power.

In his social media message Revolution #125, "Not the courts, and not the Democratic Party: Decent people, mobilizing massively and relentlessly, are the force that must be relied on to defeat Trump/MAGA fascism," Bob Avakian speaks briefly to some of the dynamics and process required:

Ongoing protests, and powerful mobilizations all over the country, have been very important, and they show the potential for what must be done. But all this must make a leap, soon, to become a massive popular uprising, determined to actually defeat this fascist regime, uniting around the urgent demand: The Trump Fascist Regime Must Go—NOW!

This means “no business as usual.” It means protest and resistance building day after day: non-violent but sustained and relentless—responding to repression by the fascist regime with even greater outpourings of resistance—uniting all who can be united, in continually growing numbers, motivated by the necessary sense of urgency, aiming to create a profound political crisis and major shifts and “realignments” throughout society, including in the dominant institutions of power, so that this illegitimate fascist regime cannot function, and is actually removed.