Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte has sent a second criminal referral to the Justice Department accusing Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook of mortgage fraud, according to a letter dated Aug. 28. Pulte alleges Cook obtained a US$361,000 mortgage on a Cambridge, Massachusetts condominium in 2021 by declaring it a “second home,” then classified the same property as an investment rental eight months later in government ethics filings, potentially securing more favorable loan terms. The new referral builds on an earlier complaint that Cook misrepresented homes in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and Atlanta, Georgia as primary residences on separate mortgage applications filed weeks apart in 2021. The two referrals have already prompted a DOJ investigation and were cited by President Donald Trump this week in his attempt to dismiss Cook from the Fed board. Cook on Thursday sued Trump in federal court, arguing the president lacks authority to remove a sitting governor without a clear statutory cause. U.S. District Judge Jia Cobb has scheduled an initial hearing for Friday on Cook’s request for a restraining order. The clash intensifies the White House’s broader campaign to secure a voting majority on the Federal Reserve Board as it presses for lower interest rates.