Fed’s Powell says he attended Supreme Court arguments over Cook due to case’s importance to Fed

WASHINGTON, Jan 28 (Reuters) – Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said on Wednesday that President Donald Trump participated in last week’s Supreme Court arguments over his effort to oust Fed Governor Lisa Cook because of the importance of the case to the U.S. central bank.

Asked at a press conference why he participated in the Supreme Court arguments, Powell said: “I would say that this case is perhaps the most important legal case in the 113-year history of the Fed. And as I thought about that, I thought it might be difficult to explain why I did not participate.”

Powell added that it is a priority for previous Fed chairmen to attend such hearings, noting that Paul Volcker appeared on the Supreme Court in the 1980s and that he believes it is appropriate for him to do so.

(Reporting by David Lawder; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)