Scott Bessent’s mortgage history undercuts Trump’s case to oust Fed governor Lisa Cook

When President Donald Trump moved to fire Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook this summer, he accused her of “potentially criminal conduct,” citing mortgage documents that appeared to show her pledging two different homes as her primary residence. But records show Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent once made nearly identical declarations without consequence.

Related: Scott Bessent threatened to punch a fellow Trump official in the ‘f***ing face,’ Politico reports

Bloomberg reports that in 2007, Bessent, a gay billionaire, signed mortgages on a Bedford Hills, New York, manor and a Provincetown, Massachusetts, beach house, each of which was designated his “principal residence.” Both loans, part of a $21 million financing package, came from Bank of America. The bank later confirmed it understood the homes to be secondary properties. Mortgage experts said such contradictions are common paperwork quirks, not fraud.

According to Bloomberg, Cook’s situation was comparable. In 2021, she signed mortgages listing both a Michigan home and a Georgia condo as primary residences. One lender had already categorized the Atlanta property as a vacation home. Cook, the first Black woman to serve on the Fed board, has denied the allegations against her, suggesting that any inconsistency was clerical.

Reuters reports that Ann Arbor officials found “no reason to believe” Cook violated property tax rules on her Michigan home. The city confirmed she was permitted to rent the house short-term without losing her tax exemption. Georgia officials likewise told Reuters that Cook never declared her Atlanta condo as a primary residence for tax purposes. Mortgage rates she received were consistent with prevailing terms.

Still, Trump dismissed Cook last month, accusing her of “gross negligence” and pressing the Fed to slash interest rates. On Wednesday, Fed chair Jerome Powell announced unrelatedly that the Fed was cutting interest rates by a quarter percent based on a softening labor market and slightly higher inflation. Cook is challenging her ouster in court, where a federal appeals panel has allowed her to remain while the case proceeds.

Bessent’s tenure has also drawn scrutiny for volatility and loyalty to Trump’s deregulatory agenda. Politico reported he threatened to punch Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte in the “f***ing face” at a Washington party, and Axios detailed a shouting match with Elon Musk inside the West Wing that escalated into a physical clash. Musk left the administration weeks later.