Shumita Basu

It's Wednesday, January 21st.

I'm Shemita Basu.

This is Apple News Today.

Today, Jerome Powell will watch on as the Supreme Court considers President Trump's attempted firing of Fed Governor Lisa Cook.

The case centers on a concept laid out in the Federal Reserve Act, which says that Fed board governors can only be fired for cause.

Chris Rugeber is an economics writer with the Associated Press who explained how this has allowed the agency to retain its independence.

The Trump administration has accused Cook of mortgage fraud and argued in court filings that that's a legitimate reason to remove her from her post.

Cook and her attorneys deny that accusation and say that she was not afforded due process.

If the court rules against Cook, it could signal an opening for Trump to remove the Fed chair as well.

Powell recently hit back against a threatened criminal indictment from the Trump administration relating to comments he made in Congress about renovations to Fed buildings.

Treasury Secretary Scott Besant said yesterday that he didn't think it was right for Powell to be attending the Supreme Court arguments.

He spoke with CNBC from Davos.

Powell has previously said that the Fed will not get involved in commenting and will abide by whatever the court decides.

While his term as chair is set to end in May, Rugeber pointed out an interesting wrinkle that could impact the future of the Fed's relationship with the White House.

Decision in the Cook case is expected by this summer.

Today in Uvalde, Texas, an extraordinary trial is entering its final stages to decide whether a single police officer can be prosecuted for how they responded to a school shooting.

Back in 2022, an 18-year-old gunman arrived at Robb Elementary School and opened fire, killing two teachers and 19 fourth graders.

In the years since, federal and state reviews have been highly critical of the police operation, with the Justice Department concluding it was riddled with, quote, More than 370 officers responded that day, and it took nearly 80 minutes for a tactical team to kill the shooter.

But Adrian Gonzalez, who arrived on campus moments before his colleagues, is one of only two men to be facing criminal charges.

Elizabeth Findell is a Texas-based reporter for The Wall Street Journal covering the trial.