President Trump has been using the bully pulpit of his presidency to go after the Federal Reserve with a vengeance, and Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) chief William Pulte has acted as his megaphone-in-chief throughout his pressure campaign.

Bill Pulte — a private equity executive and social media philanthropist — has quickly become an outspoken fixture in the Trump administration’s efforts to overhaul the central bank and use a little-known agency to investigate perceived enemies.

Bill Pulte, who runs the Federal Housing Finance Agency under President Donald Trump, confirmed Thursday that he filed a criminal referral against Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook for alleged mortgage fraud.

The accusation seems almost tailor-made for pleasing Trump by tapping into two of the president’s biggest grievances.

Philadelphia Fed researchers in a 2023 report assessed the number of “fraudulent investors” in the mortgage market, which they defined as those who had more than one owner-occupied home purchase loan within four quarters after the first one was originated.

A Justice Department official is set to probe Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook after she was accused by a member of President Donald Trump’s administration of committing mortgage fraud, according to a letter sent Thursday to Fed Chair Jerome Powell.

Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte suggested Thursday that his referral of Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook for alleged mortgage fraud was part of a broader crackdown on the issue.

The U.S. Housing Finance Agency is investigating properties owned by Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, including her holdings in Michigan, Georgia, and Massachusetts. Allegations about Cook's mortgage practices have prompted this inquiry,