Muting the core of the agency’s mission, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau under the controversial direction of Trump-appointed Mick Mulvaney has sidelined consumer protection and indicated “deregulation” is the forefront of its purpose.
The difference is displayed at the bottom of the most recent press releases from the agency.
The first image below shows the mission statement as it appears at the bottom of two press releases dated Dec. 21:
The second image is from the previous press release dated Nov. 24:
The new version puts “by regularly identifying and addressing outdated, unnecessary, or unduly burdensome regulations” first and also leaves out the word “fairly.”
Observers of the change took to social media to note and criticize the shift:
The shift came shortly after Mulvaney told his staff that he’d be adding to its ranks six Trump loyalists.
Among the six, Ryan Grim reported for The Intercept, are “John Czwartacki, who does public relations for the Office of Management and Budget, which Mulvaney also leads. Czwartacki will now do the same job at the CFPB, which, by statute, is supposed to be an independent agency that was created in the aftermath of the 2007-08 financial crisis.”
The staffing announcement drew the ire of CFPB architect Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). She wrote to Mulvaney: “Your naked effort to politicize the consumer agency runs counter to the agency’s mission to be an independent voice for consumers with the power to stand up to Wall Street banks.”
Trump’s appointment of Mulvaney to serve as acting director of the agency following the resignation of Richard Cordray sparked a firestorm of outrage, as well as a lawsuit by CFPB deputy director Leandra English who, citing the law which created the agency, argued that she was the “rightful acting director.” She’s appealing a district court’s decision to block her suit.
Mulvaney, for his part, is still also serving as White House budget chief.
Comments are closed