Teh Department of Justice will investigate Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook based on a criminal referral sent by a Trump administration housing official and a strong critic of central bank chairman Jerome Powell, according to a letter obtained by CNBC’s Sara Eisen on Thursday.

The letter,addressed to Powell and signed by Justice Department attorney Ed Martin,urges the Fed chair to remove Cook from the board in light of the allegations.

“Do it today before it is too late!” Martin wrote.

Though, Powell does not have the authority to remove Cook. The Federal Reserve Act of 1913 explicitly states that board members can only be removed by the president.

Furthermore,the Supreme Court suggested earlier this year that the president does not have the authority to arbitrarily remove Fed governors over policy disagreements.

The DOJ and the Fed declined CNBC’s requests for comment on the letter.

Martin noted in his letter that he received a criminal referral about Cook, and that she has responded that she is gathering evidence in preparation for her response to the allegations.

“It is a very troubling public