
Mick Mulvaney is expected to be named the interim director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, after saying numerous times that the agency should not exist. (Photo: Gage Skidmore/Flickr/cc)
'Giant Middle Finger to Consumers' as Trump Looks at Mulvaney to Head CFPB
"This is no place for another Trump-appointed industry hack."
Progressive leaders on Friday decried the Trump administration's reported plan to install Mick Mulvaney, an outspoken critic of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), as interim director of the agency that was formed after the 2008 financial crisis to shield citizens from abusive practices by banks and other corporations.
While consumer advocates and progressives like Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), who was a chief architect of the bureau, have heralded the agency as a much-needed watchdog for Wall Street, payday loan companies, and other predatory lenders, Mulvaney has referred to the CFPB as a "sad joke" and has called for it to be disbanded.
"The new director of the CFPB must be someone with a track record of protecting consumers and holding financial firms responsible when they cheat people," Warren said in a statement after the current CFPB head, Richard Cordray, announced he would step down by the end of the month. "This is no place for another Trump-appointed industry hack."
Mulvaney currently directs the Office of Management and Budget, where he has shown little concern for the U.S. families and consumers the CFPB is meant to protect. In the budget proposal he unveiled earlier this year, he urged cuts to food stamps and Medicaid and the elimination of student loan subsidies.
"Could not imagine a more outrageously terrible selection to run CFPB--a man who *hates* its mission."--Richard Yeselson, Dissent Magazine
He also argued against Meals on Wheels, declaring that the government shouldn't spend money to feed elderly people because it was "just not showing any results," and said that after-school programs that offer meals to low-income children were unnecessary because there was "no demonstrable evidence" that the programs improve school performance--evidently the only potential benefit to such an effort that Mulvaney considered.
Under Cordray, the CFPB ordered Wells Fargo to pay $185 million in fines for opening fraudulent accounts in customers' names. It also introduced a rule allowing consumers to file class-action lawsuits against banks and credit-card companies--but that law was killed by the Republican-led Congress.
Critics on social media expressed fears that Mulvaney will further de-fang the agency or destroy in completely.
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. In a few short weeks, US voters will have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. Our Fall Campaign is underway, and we need your help. To power our newsroom through the rest of the year, we need to raise $125,000 by midnight on October 31. So if you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
Progressive leaders on Friday decried the Trump administration's reported plan to install Mick Mulvaney, an outspoken critic of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), as interim director of the agency that was formed after the 2008 financial crisis to shield citizens from abusive practices by banks and other corporations.
While consumer advocates and progressives like Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), who was a chief architect of the bureau, have heralded the agency as a much-needed watchdog for Wall Street, payday loan companies, and other predatory lenders, Mulvaney has referred to the CFPB as a "sad joke" and has called for it to be disbanded.
"The new director of the CFPB must be someone with a track record of protecting consumers and holding financial firms responsible when they cheat people," Warren said in a statement after the current CFPB head, Richard Cordray, announced he would step down by the end of the month. "This is no place for another Trump-appointed industry hack."
Mulvaney currently directs the Office of Management and Budget, where he has shown little concern for the U.S. families and consumers the CFPB is meant to protect. In the budget proposal he unveiled earlier this year, he urged cuts to food stamps and Medicaid and the elimination of student loan subsidies.
"Could not imagine a more outrageously terrible selection to run CFPB--a man who *hates* its mission."--Richard Yeselson, Dissent Magazine
He also argued against Meals on Wheels, declaring that the government shouldn't spend money to feed elderly people because it was "just not showing any results," and said that after-school programs that offer meals to low-income children were unnecessary because there was "no demonstrable evidence" that the programs improve school performance--evidently the only potential benefit to such an effort that Mulvaney considered.
Under Cordray, the CFPB ordered Wells Fargo to pay $185 million in fines for opening fraudulent accounts in customers' names. It also introduced a rule allowing consumers to file class-action lawsuits against banks and credit-card companies--but that law was killed by the Republican-led Congress.
Critics on social media expressed fears that Mulvaney will further de-fang the agency or destroy in completely.
Progressive leaders on Friday decried the Trump administration's reported plan to install Mick Mulvaney, an outspoken critic of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), as interim director of the agency that was formed after the 2008 financial crisis to shield citizens from abusive practices by banks and other corporations.
While consumer advocates and progressives like Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), who was a chief architect of the bureau, have heralded the agency as a much-needed watchdog for Wall Street, payday loan companies, and other predatory lenders, Mulvaney has referred to the CFPB as a "sad joke" and has called for it to be disbanded.
"The new director of the CFPB must be someone with a track record of protecting consumers and holding financial firms responsible when they cheat people," Warren said in a statement after the current CFPB head, Richard Cordray, announced he would step down by the end of the month. "This is no place for another Trump-appointed industry hack."
Mulvaney currently directs the Office of Management and Budget, where he has shown little concern for the U.S. families and consumers the CFPB is meant to protect. In the budget proposal he unveiled earlier this year, he urged cuts to food stamps and Medicaid and the elimination of student loan subsidies.
"Could not imagine a more outrageously terrible selection to run CFPB--a man who *hates* its mission."--Richard Yeselson, Dissent Magazine
He also argued against Meals on Wheels, declaring that the government shouldn't spend money to feed elderly people because it was "just not showing any results," and said that after-school programs that offer meals to low-income children were unnecessary because there was "no demonstrable evidence" that the programs improve school performance--evidently the only potential benefit to such an effort that Mulvaney considered.
Under Cordray, the CFPB ordered Wells Fargo to pay $185 million in fines for opening fraudulent accounts in customers' names. It also introduced a rule allowing consumers to file class-action lawsuits against banks and credit-card companies--but that law was killed by the Republican-led Congress.
Critics on social media expressed fears that Mulvaney will further de-fang the agency or destroy in completely.

